Context
Grand Rapids Christian High School, a 9-12 school, is a member of Christian Schools International, and is one of 5 campuses of Grand Rapids Christian Schools. The U.S Department of Education named it an “Exemplary Secondary School,” as it has a very high college-attendance rate, at 94% in 2013, high average ACT, with 23.1, compared to the state average of 20.1, and a lot of National Merit Scholars (Grand Rapids Christian High School, 2014). The school is located in a suburban area of Grand Rapids, which, from the looks of houses and cars in the area, is likely composed of mainly middle class residents. Students come from all over. I know of students who live on the same street as the school, as well as students who come from 45 minutes away. Just a little ways down the road is Ottawa Hills High School, which, in contrast to Grand Rapids Christian High School, was in the bottom 5% of schools in Michigan last year, and the majority of its students have free or reduced lunch. Grand Rapids Christian Schools are faith-based, with the mission, “Preparing students to be effective servants of Christ in contemporary society” (Grand Rapids Christian High School, 2014). According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2012), in the 2011-2012 school year, Grand Rapids Christian High School had 947 students, 716 of whom were White, 134 Black, 67 Asian, 20 Hispanic, and 10 Native American. From my experience in the school, I would say these statistics are similar to the current school year.
The class this unit is designed for is a 10th grade Biology class. At the school, there are four different biology classes: Biology, Enhanced Biology, AP Biology, and Anatomy and Physiology. Biology is a more basic level class, Enhanced Biology is the “normal”-level class, AP Biology leads to college credit, and Anatomy and Physiology is a biology elective. The textbook series used in this class is Glencoe's (2010), which has more basic concepts than the textbook used in Biology Enhanced. The class basically follows the textbook, and the study guides, often given as homework, are from resources accompanying the textbook.
The classroom I am in is designed for no more than 28 students (that is how many chairs there are in the room). One of the classes I am teaching this unit in has 20 students, and the other has 15. All students in the classes are in 10th grade, and in both classes there are more boys than girls, but not significantly more. In the first class there are 11 boys and 9 girls, and in the second there are 10 boys and 5 girls. Comparing to the statistics in the previous paragraph, there are a disproportionate number of African American students in these classes. 7 out of 20 of the first class are African American, along with 12 Caucasian students and one Hispanic student, and 5 out of 15 of the second class are African American, with the remaining 10 being Caucasian. As far as I know, all students’ primary languages are English. The classroom set-up is as shown below:
The class this unit is designed for is a 10th grade Biology class. At the school, there are four different biology classes: Biology, Enhanced Biology, AP Biology, and Anatomy and Physiology. Biology is a more basic level class, Enhanced Biology is the “normal”-level class, AP Biology leads to college credit, and Anatomy and Physiology is a biology elective. The textbook series used in this class is Glencoe's (2010), which has more basic concepts than the textbook used in Biology Enhanced. The class basically follows the textbook, and the study guides, often given as homework, are from resources accompanying the textbook.
The classroom I am in is designed for no more than 28 students (that is how many chairs there are in the room). One of the classes I am teaching this unit in has 20 students, and the other has 15. All students in the classes are in 10th grade, and in both classes there are more boys than girls, but not significantly more. In the first class there are 11 boys and 9 girls, and in the second there are 10 boys and 5 girls. Comparing to the statistics in the previous paragraph, there are a disproportionate number of African American students in these classes. 7 out of 20 of the first class are African American, along with 12 Caucasian students and one Hispanic student, and 5 out of 15 of the second class are African American, with the remaining 10 being Caucasian. As far as I know, all students’ primary languages are English. The classroom set-up is as shown below:
For either class, there is a maximum of four students at each table. Students turn in all assignments to the box at the side of the room, and when there is another assignment to begin immediately, it will be on the counter next to the box, and students will know to pick it up as they hand in the previous assignment. The class has 1:1 laptops, which are not used incredibly often in this class. When they are not being used for class, students may not have them open, and they are also not allowed to have their phones out in class.
In both classes, there is an aide who comes in to work with some of the students. I don’t know exactly what disabilities students in the class have, but they range from ADHD to one girl who has been described to me as having the intellect of a kindergartener. The aide always insists that the special education students sit at the same table.
In both classes, there is an aide who comes in to work with some of the students. I don’t know exactly what disabilities students in the class have, but they range from ADHD to one girl who has been described to me as having the intellect of a kindergartener. The aide always insists that the special education students sit at the same table.