Evaluating Contextual Factors and Their Impact on Instructional Planning and Implementation

Evaluating Contextual Factors and Their Impact on Instructional Planning and Implementation

Community and School Information

In Ocean Springs, Mississippi, the Calvert MELC Pre-K School is a public institution designated as a Title I school. It is responsible for serving approximately 1,400 students in Mississippi County. This school offers online training for parents and provides technological resources to support the learning process. Furthermore, the school offers a meal program that provides eligible students with free or reduced-cost meal options based on their family’s income levels.

Furthermore, the special meal program in the school significantly impacts both students and the teaching process primarily because the school has approximately 350 students who rely on free lunch services. Failure to collaborate successfully with the district to implement a robust meal program directly affects the students. In such cases, students often struggle to keep up with their studies for various reasons, including a lack of nutritious meals at home and school. Additionally, student transportation is a crucial factor that influences the learning process. Given the students’ disadvantaged economic status, a lack of adequate transportation can impede their learning and put them at a disadvantage compared to peers with better access to transportation. As Soundariya et al. (2017) pointed out, effective transportation plays a pivotal role in ensuring equity and a level playing field for students, ultimately leading to improved academic performance.

Several environmental factors impact the educational experience. For instance, one of these factors is the racial composition of the classroom, which consists entirely of white students. This homogeneous ethnic makeup can disrupt the learning process because the students may lack awareness and understanding of different racial and cultural backgrounds within their community. This limited exposure affects the students, especially given the increasing number of immigrants from various ethnic backgrounds coming to the U.S., making it important for students to know different cultures, which can affect their educational performance (Chen & Yang, 2019). Another relevant factor is the gender distribution of the teaching staff in the school, with 96 percent being female. This imbalance reflects gender inequality among the educators. Such a situation can create difficulties for female teachers in addressing male students’ specific needs and study requirements. The limited ability to connect with or attend to male students’ needs can negatively impact students’ learning outcomes and overall educational experiences.

Classroom Information

Physical Features

The physical characteristics of the classroom, including its layout and equipment, substantially impact the learning process. The classroom setting allows the students to interact and engage in discussion, where they get the chance to share different diverse ideas and knowledge based on their cultural backgrounds. The tools and equipment in the classroom accommodate the diverse needs of all students, including students with disabilities and those with special needs. As a result, the school allocates substantial resources to enhance these physical aspects of the classrooms. By improving the seating arrangements and overall comfort in the classrooms, the school aims to address the perceived disparities among students. The seating arrangements and layouts for the students ensure that the students have the provided cultural backgrounds, which enhances their cultural knowledge. It increases students’ motivation to learn and their ability to concentrate during class. A classroom environment that promotes high levels of concentration among students tends to yield better academic outcomes and encourages more interactive learning experiences. The physical attributes of the classroom also contribute to student’s satisfaction with their education and their assessment of the instructors, ultimately motivating educators to deliver learning content more effectively.

Technology, Equipment, and Resources

The presence of technology in the classroom setting significantly impacts the outcomes of both teaching and learning. For instance, the students in my classroom having a wider range of access to technological resources and equipment, such as computers, chrome books, and Apple tablets, in the classroom contribute to enhancing literacy within the class and the broader community. The resources are more effective as they enhance the teaching and learning process in the classroom. The resources are also set to accommodate the special needs of all the students in the classroom. Effective integration of technological resources and equipment offers students multiple tools for completing their tasks and strongly emphasizes improving academic results through research (Chen & Yang, 2019). For educators, technology provides more effective and user-friendly teaching tools.

Parental Involvement

The level of parental involvement in children’s education is another contextual factor within the classroom. Making sure that the school’s website is readily accessible serves as a means to keep parents informed about their children’s ongoing studies. Organizing quarterly meetings with parents allows them to observe and monitor their child’s academic progress and engagement with various subjects. This arrangement lets parents share their insights, enhancing the educational and teaching process.

Grouping Practices

At Calvert MELK Pre-K school, individualized learning strategies accommodate students with varying interests, strengths, needs, and experiences. This approach involves small group instruction, enabling teachers to tailor their teaching to each student’s abilities and requirements. The two teachers in the classroom ensure that they work with a small number of students and in groups during class time to ensure that all the students are attended to and that all their needs have been met effectively. For example, a teacher can easily identify a student who is struggling with understanding certain concepts, and they help them immediately. It also ensures that teachers introduce activities and concepts that are appropriately challenging for each student. Additionally, educators employ learning centers that promote personalized learning and student collaboration.

Classroom Rules and Routines

The classroom routine and guidelines also establish a favorable and inviting learning environment. Classroom rules foster clear communication and mutual understanding between teachers and students. These rules cover various aspects, including policies on late assignments, food, extra credit, and cell phone usage. They also help students comprehend the consequences of their actions, such as potential exam failures or missed assignments. Consequently, having well-defined rules diminishes absenteeism, prevents food in the classroom, reduces distractions, and promotes the punctual completion of assignments.

Student Characteristics

            In the selected classroom, the teacher will instruct a pre-kindergarten class comprising 17 students, all four to five years old. The class has a slightly varying gender distribution, with eleven male and six female students, 11:6. This classroom is characterized by a diverse student body, representing various backgrounds, ethnicities, and racial backgrounds, including white and black students. Based on the students present in the classroom and their diverse needs, the classroom has two teachers, the standard teacher and a paraprofessional, to ensure the needs of students with special needs are met. However, it’s worth noting that the institution has a higher representation of most students, as evidenced by population ratios and class demographics (Retnowati et al., 2018). Furthermore, the school accommodates students with disabilities and varying grade levels, which educators must consider when planning and preparing teaching materials. Teachers should be aware of the diverse learning approaches that students may have, which is particularly crucial for meeting the needs of special-needs learners, including two pre-kindergarten students with developmental delays. The classroom setting has a layout of a group setting, where each group has three students. The grouping ensures that students can interact with each other and share different ideas. Sharing ideas and interacting with other students help the student gain more skills and knowledge about other cultures, which also enhances diversity.

Given this information, educators must design lesson plans and classroom activities incorporating various teaching methods to facilitate these special-needs students’ learning. Moreover, understanding students’ skills and prior learning experiences is also critical in shaping their learning outcomes. For instance, in my pre-kindergarten class, there is one English Language Learner (ELL) student whose primary language is Spanish and two students whose primary language is French. As a result, teachers must assess the learner’s skills and previous educational background to support their engagement and education effectively (Soundariya et al. 2017).

Accommodation and Modifications for Students

Conclusion

When planning instruction and teaching methods, stakeholders must consider various factors within the classroom, community, and school. The interplay of these contextual elements is instrumental in addressing the diverse learning needs of students within the institution. A problem-based approach is advocated instead of a project-based one, as it yields superior educational outcomes. When developing teaching strategies, race, community characteristics, environmental conditions, and socioeconomic considerations are paramount. The physical attributes of the classroom, including resource accessibility, also directly impact the learning process. Consequently, educators must exercise judgment in evaluating and understanding the extent to which contextual factors can influence a child’s learning experience. In doing so, teachers and other stakeholders are challenged to remain aware of the various contextual factors that could pose challenges or impact students’ academic progress.

References

Chen, C. H., & Yang, Y. C. (2019). Revisiting the effects of project-based learning on students’ academic achievement: A meta-analysis investigating moderators. Educational Research Review, 26, 71-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2018.11.001

Retnowati, E., Ayres, P., & Sweller, J. (2018). Collaborative learning affects when students have complete or incomplete knowledge. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 32(6), 681-692. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.3444

Soundariya, K., Deepika, V., & Kalaiselvan, G. (2017). A study on the learning styles and learning approaches among medical students. National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology, 7(10), 1020. doi:10.5455/njppp.2017.7.0413011052017

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Impact on Instructional Planning and Implementation

Purpose for Step 1: Consider the learning environment and contextual factors that may have an impact on the teaching-learning process. Discuss characteristics about the school, classroom, and individual student needs that should be considered as instructional plans are developed. List accommodations/modifications that will be made to instructional planning and implementation based on contextual information of the assigned classroom.

Task: Discuss the relevant contextual factors, including community and school information, classroom information, student characteristics, and accommodations/modifications for planning, instruction, and assessment/s. Include any supports and challenges that impact instruction and student learning. Discuss any implications and accommodations/modifications needed for instruction based on contextual factors.

Prompt: In the discussion on contextual factors, include the following:

• 1.1. Community and school information
  • geographic location
  • community/school population (diversity, race, ethnicity, culture, gender, etc.)
  • socio-economic status (SES; ex: free/reduced lunch, Title I school, etc.)
  • type of school (locale, grade levels, and any other pertinent characteristics)

Consider additional areas for discussion, which could include Community support for education and  Other factors in the environment that impact education.  

• 2. Classroom information
• Discuss the classroom information:
  • physical features and arrangement of the classroom
  • availability of technology, equipment, and resources
  • extent of parental/guardian involvement
  • grouping practices (whole group, small group, pairs, etc.

Consider additional areas for discussion, which could include but are not limited to how groups were determined, classroom rules and routines, scheduling, and additional teachers/students that enter or leave the room on a regular basis.

• 3.  Student characteristics – Related to the Students and Learning Environment
  • Discuss the following required areas for student characteristics:
    • grade/age level
    • gender
    • race/ethnicity/culture
    • special needs
    • achievement/developmental/skill levels
    • language (English, ESL, ELL)

• interests, learning differences, and any other pertinent information