North Providence Public Schools

For this post I have not yet started my service learning, so I am using the school I go to for my Special Needs in the Regular Classroom practicum. Birchwood Middle School in North Providence is different than the idea of middle school I have come to know. The first thing I noticed about the school is that it is secluded in a neighborhood off of a main road. It has the usual things a school should have: library, cafeteria, gymnasium, etc. The staff is overall pleasant. The secretary at the front desk seemed angry when I told her I was new, but after she realized why I was there she seemed to grow nicer. I'm sure she must be used to dealing with absentee or angry parents and non interested students.

The teacher I work directly with is such a nice man. He reminds me of so many teachers I have had that I loved over the years. He tries his hardest to interact with his students in a way that they will respond positively too, yet there were times when he had to rely on authority to get things done. The classes spent the day in the library working on a project. Each student was assigned a country and asked to find out specific information about their location. I was so surprised to find out what a low level the students were at. Apart from not knowing much about most of the countries, some students could not even spell their country right, even while looking at a map. One student was researching Greece, but had written Grease on her assignment. Another spent the forty minute period learning about Ireland by searching if Leprechauns were real.

I think the thing that most surprised me about the school was the principle. He walked into the class I was observing and looked to see me, having no idea who I was. I explained I was observing the class and in mid sentence he stopped talking to me and approached an eighth grade student and questioned her about her purse. It was a large purse, the type in style for many young girls, and he told her it was too big to be considered a purse and that she would have to put it away. He left and returned a few minutes later with a female administrator to discuss the size of the bag and determine if it was allowed. I found it strange that this is what the principle felt was important to spend the time doing.