Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Brittany Courtot
University of Maine at Farmington
JANUARY
MAY
2016
1
The
Community:
Skowhegan
Area
High
School
is
located
in
Skowhegan,
Maine,
which
has
a
town
population
of
approximately
8,458
in
Somerset
Country.
(United
States
Census
Bureau
2010)
With
the
Kennebec
River
running
through
Skowhegan,
Skowhegan
is
a
central
location
that
is
rich
in
natural
resources,
which
in
the
past
made
it
a
perfect
location
for
Native
Americans
to
utilize
for
subsistence.
(Skowhegan.org)
Today,
Skowhegans
primarily
white
rural
community
(96.9%)
(United
States
Census
Bureau,
2010)
capitalizes
its
historical
background
as
well
as
its
natural
settings
to
prompt
visits
and
local
development.
(Skowhegan.org)
Local Politics have come into the foreground of life in Skowhegan because of
Aside from this political tension, the employment data looks fair with the
unemployment
rate
only
being
a
bit
high
at
8.5%,
which
compared
to
Maines
unemployment
rate
of
5.7%
(United
States
Department
of
Labor,
2014-2015)
and
the
United
States
unemployment
rate
of
5%
(United
States
Department
of
Labor,
2014-
This somewhat high unemployment rate could steam from the slightly narrow
job
fields,
the
two
highest
job
fields
being,
Manufacturing
at
21.8%
and
Heath
Care
and
Social
Assistance
at
22.3%
(U.S.
Census
Bureau,
2010).
This
limits
the
possible
opportunities
and
skill
sets
needed
with
the
Skowhegan
area,
which
could
potentially
affect
how
much
motivation
my
students
will
have
studying
Social
Studies.
Students
might
view
Social
Employment
Statistics
100
Studies as a
Maine
80
misuse of time
Skowhegan
60
40
subject is not
20
0
Employment
Figure 1
Unemployment
immediately
applicable
to
either
major
field
within
Skowhegan.
Yet,
the
major
historical
focus
of
the
towns
economic
plan
seems
to
indicate
there
might
be
some
potential
gains
for
students
within
the
Social
Studies
field.
The
narrow
job
market
also
extends
to
the
amount
of
education
a
person
receives,
as
only
16.9%
of
individuals
from
Skowhegan
pursue
a
Bachelors
degree
or
higher
compared
to
the
28.4%
who
pursue
Bachelors
degree
throughout
Maine.
(U.S.
Census
Bureau,
2010-2014).
This
lack
of
pursuing
higher
Education
might
also
relate
to
another
financial
issue
in
Skowhegan:
the
median
household
income.
Despite
Skowhegan
having
a
decent
enough
unemployment
rate,
it
suffers
from
another
financial
problem.
If
you
look
at
Figure
2
you
can
see
that
the
Median
Household
Income
for
Skowhegan
is
significantly
lower
than
both
the
State
and
Countrys
median
incomes.
Now
on
top
of
this,
Skowhegan
has
a
high
percentage
of
people
in
poverty,
22.1%
compared
to
the
14.1%
of
the
State
(United
States
Census
Bureau,
2010).
Considering
both
of
these
factor,
it
is
entirely
possible
many
students
will
be
unable
to
provide
materials
or
resources
outside
the
classroom.
Moreover,
some
students
might
arrive
at
school
hungry
and
that
will
hinder
their
ability
to
focus
or
be
motivated.
$48,804
$53,482
$33,371
Thankfully,
Skowhegans
distract
RSU
54
in
2014
became
one
of
the
first
Maine
Figure 2
United States
Skowhegan
school
distracts
to
offer
free
lunches
and
breakfasts
to
all
students.
As
Eric
Jensen
in
his
article
How
Poverty
Affects
Classroom
Engagement
writes,
health-related
factors
can
affect
attention,
reasoning,
learning
and
memory.
(Jensen,
2013).
In
this,
my
students
focusing
issues
might
be
related
to
poor
nutrition
in
some
instances,
despite
the
free
breakfast
and
lunch.
Jensen
further
contends,
One
reason
many
students
seem
unmotivated
is
because
of
lack
of
hope
and
optimism.
(Jensen,
2013).
Ive
seen
the
past
few
weeks
that
many
of
my
students
who
struggle
with
financially
or
have
poor
family
situations
have
a
hard
time
seeing
the
point
in
doing
an
assignment.
So,
my
job
is
to
facilitate
students
discover
the
connection
and
the
value
of
their
learning
experience.
Also,
to
remedy
some
of
that
financial
embarrassment,
I
will
plan
out
my
lessons
so
that
students
are
not
singled
out
or
miss
any
experience
due
to
lack
of
funds.
Beyond
the
financial
aspect
of
the
community
of
Skowhegan,
there
is
the
make-
up
of
the
household,
which
can
denote
many
things
within
a
students
life
including,
again,
their
motivation
as
well
as
how
much
support
there
are
getting
at
home.
Skowhegans
breakdown
of
households
can
be
seen
in
Figure
3
below,
which
shows
that
half
of
the
households
with
children
under
18
have
both
a
mother
and
father.
However,
35%
of
those
households
in
Skowhegan
have
only
a
mother,
not
a
father
and
13%
have
a
father,
but
not
a
mother.
(United
States
35%
52%
Figure
3
13%
The
non-
traditional
households
Male
Householder
-
No
Wife
Present
Female
Householder
-
No
Husband
Present
could
be
explained
by
families
with
gay
or
lesbian
parents,
but
also
single
parents
as
well.
The
marital
status
of
families
can
impact
a
students
support
system
as
home
in
a
few
different
ways.
Tension
within
the
family
can
cause
a
lack
of
motivation,
no
parental
support
in
academics
and
the
like.
Moreover,
single
parent
households
with
many
children
can
indicate
that
older
children
take
on
part-time
jobs
or
baby-sit
other
siblings.
Any
of
these
situations
can
lead
to
a
lack
of
motivation
due
to
fatigue
as
well
as
lack
of
time
to
do
assigned
homework.
Thus,
when
I
am
planning
for
my
lessons
I
will
try
to
be
aware
of
where
such
cases
might
arise,
but
moreover
to
limit
the
amount
of
homework
given
if
possible
as
well
being
somewhat
flexible
with
due
dates.
Moreover,
I
would
try
to
offer
emotional
support
options
such
as
school
counseling
for
those
students
struggling
with
family
tensions
so
as
to
give
some
relief
from
that
stress.
The
District
Skowhegan
Area
High
School
is
in
District
RSU
54/
MSAD
54
that
has
seven
schools
within
that
distracts
serving
grades
from
pre-K
to
12th.
Since
October
of
2014-
15,
the
enrollment
in
the
distract
is
2,633
students.
The
approximate
expenditure
per
student
is
$11,874
which
only
slightly
trails
behind
the
States
average
expenditure
per
student,
which
is
$12,056.
(Maine
Department
of
Education,
2013-14).
However,
the
question
is
how
is
that
money
being
spent
on
services
for
that
student?
You
can
see
the
breakdown
of
that
spending
in
Figure
4
below,
which
illustrates
the
breakdown
of
student
expenditure
within
the
distract.
Student
and
Staff
Support
7%
Figure
4
As
you
can
see,
Distract
RSU
54
spends
nearly
70%
of
its
per
student
expenditure
on
instruction,
which
includes
teacher
training,
Special
Education
Instruction,
Career
and
Technical
Education,
and
curriculum
development.
(Maine
Department
of
Education,
2013-2014).
It
is
obvious
from
this
that
RSU
54
puts
immense
importance
on
having
highly
qualified
teachers
and
many
forms
of
educational
supports
or
choices.
Because
of
this,
my
time
in
the
classrooms
there
will
be
well
supported
and
my
instructional
segments
will
have
support
in
terms
of
materials
and
highly
trained
colleagues.
Moreover, the residents of the towns within RSU 54, in May of 2015, approved a
$34
million
budget,
a
1
percent
increase
from
last
year.
Much
of
this
budget
will
be
redirected
towards
special
education
teachers
and
pay
increases
for
teachers.
(Harlow,
2015)
The
monetary
support
for
the
Special
Education
program
within
Distract
RSU
54
illustrates
just
how
much
the
students
are
put
first
and
supported
within
this
distract
so
this
support
network
is
something
to
keep
in
mind
when
I
am
in
the
classrooms
of
Skowhegan
if
I
am
working
with
a
student
who
requires
additional
support
in
any
way.
This
breakdown
is
something
to
keep
in
mind
when
I
enter
Skowhegan,
as
it
shows
how
much
the
community
supports
the
schools
therein,
which
is
reflected
in
the
pride
many
have
in
Skowhegan
High
School
as
seen
by
the
discussions
during
the
mascot
debates.
The
School
Skowhegan Area High School sits back from the road, its Middle School
counterpart
sits
just
down
the
road.
The
large
space
of
the
main
foyer
can
be
slightly
intimidating
at
first,
but
the
Main
Office
is
full
of
friendly
and
helpful
individuals,
which
helps
set
the
tone
of
the
school.
Skowhegan Area High School has a student population of 813, which compared
to
other
rural
school
is
a
relatively
large
student
population.
Although
upon
entering
the
classroom
The
schools
mission
statement
dictates
that
students
will
become
lifelong
learners
who
excel
in
areas
such
as
problem
solving,
research
skills,
and
becoming
effective
collaborator.
(MSAD54,
2015)
A
very
important
academic
expectation
therein
is
the
skill
of
listening,
which
is
something
that
indicates
that
Skowhegan
values
developing
positive
environment
and
teamwork.
This
is
something
to
be
mindful
of
when
working
with
students,
structuring
my
lessons
to
build
off
developing
these
skills
further.
and
developing
lessons
is
how
proficiency
the
average
student
is
in
a
given
subject.
Skowhegan
High
School
has
34.1%
of
their
tested
students
meeting
of
reaching
higher
than
the
required
level
in
Reading
(Maine
Department
of
Education,
2013-2014).
In
Figure
5
below,
you
can
see
how
much
further
Skowhegan
falls
behind
the
States
Reading
scores.
Considering,
how
much
reading
is
required
in
Social
Studies,
it
will
be
good
to
plan
my
lessons
around
the
fact
that
many
of
my
students
will
be
reading
below
grade
level,
including
having
a
variety
of
resource
materials
and
varied
level
of
reading
sources.
20.00%
0.00%
Skowhegan
Maine Target
Figure
5
Although
the
given
student:teacher
ratio
for
Skowhegan
is
14:1,
which
is
higher
than
the
ME
average
of
12:1,
(Public
School
Review,
2014)
the
school
recently
went
through
cut-backs.
This
resulted
in
larger
class
sizes,
now
ranging
from
24
to
26
students
per
classroom
teacher.
This
classroom
size
presents
difficulties
in
terms
of
maintaining
student
focus
and
being
able
to
facilitate
all
the
students
needs.
Therefore,
I
will
try
to
make
it
easier
for
individual
students
to
contact
me
with
questions
and
I
have
begun
to
construct
a
Google
Site
for
students
to
use
as
a
forum
to
do
so.
With
this,
I
hope
I
will
be
able
to
focus
on
student
needs
and
craft
a
community
of
learners
who
can
achieve
their
academic
goals.
Classroom
Factors
My
high
school
students
all
have
access
to
Mac
laptops
through
the
school
purchasing
them.
However,
Skowhegan
is
not
a
1:1
school,
so
students
only
can
use
them
within
class
or
in
the
library
without
taking
them
home.
To
obtain
laptops
for
a
classroom
I
must
book
them
ahead
of
time
so
that
a
cart
will
be
brought
to
the
room.
Moreover,
as
previously
stated,
Skowhegans
community
is
financially
struggling
and
as
such
many
students
do
not
have
computers
or
internet
at
home.
This
situation
presents
some
concerns
about
students
being
able
to
complete
their
homework
on
time,
so
I
must
be
aware
that
students
will
perhaps
need
more
time
on
assignments
or
homework
that
does
not
require
technology
to
complete.
However,
all
the
students
at
Skowhegan
get
an
email
to
use
when
they
are
Freshmen
so
I
am
able
to
communicate
with
students
who
have
study
halls
or
can
at
home.
This
enables
me
to
help
students
catch
up
when
theyve
been
absent
or
give
them
additional
support
when
needed.
Room P2 is located in the orange section of the Skowhegan High School all
the
Social
Studies
classroom
clustered
together
within
that
section.
This
is
the
same
for
all
content
areas,
each
wing
of
the
building
dedicated
to
a
specific
content
area.
The
tables
set
two
students
with
four
rows
of
four
tables.
The
students
typically
push
their
tables
together,
which
help
facilitate
group
work
or
discussions.
The
students
all
face
the
white
board,
although
the
projector
screen
typically
covers
the
whiteboard
most
of
the
time.
I
have
begun
to
write
down
the
Agenda
for
the
class
period
on
the
board,
including
noting
what
homework
is
due
for
the
rest
of
the
week.
This
is
scaffolding
my
website
for
those
students
who
do
not
have
access
to
internet
or
a
computer.
My
desk
sits
to
the
left
of
the
whiteboard
and
Mrs.
Schaffers
desk
sits
to
the
right
at
the
front
of
the
room.
Overall,
the
room
is
pretty
empty
minus
a
shelf
for
textbooks,
as
the
school
cannot
afford
to
buy
textbooks
for
all
students,
and
a
back
wall
showing
student
work.
The
former,
the
lack
of
textbooks,
is
only
a
slight
issue
because
it
means
that
most
reading
must
be
done
in
class
so
I
must
include
that
into
my
planning
of
my
lessons.
means
that
classes
alternate
every
other
day.
The
two
Day
schedules
can
be
seen
in
Figure
6
below,
Day One
Day Two
Figure 6
I
have
two
periods
of
United
States
History
II
and
all
my
students
are
very
unique
and
come
from
a
variety
of
backgrounds.
I
gave
them
a
Student
Interest
Survey
on
the
first
day
that
I
was
in
the
classroom
to
gauge
them
as
individuals
and
their
learning
style.
In
Figure
7
and
Figure
8,
I
recorded
the
results
in
a
shorthand
style.
Both
periods
results
tell
me
that
I
should
be
using
small
groups
activities,
which
seems
to
help
them
engage
the
content
and
maintain
focus
on
task.
So
it
would
be
beneficial
to
do
a
variety
of
cooperative
learning
activities
with
their
students,
however
Figure 7
Figure 8
learn
best
to
help
them
engage
the
content
in
a
deep,
meaningful
way.
For
example,
I
am
in
contact
with
U.S.
Park
Rangers
in
Gettysburg,
PA
to
attempt
a
distance
learning
project
for
my
WWII
unit
come
March.
This
matches
with
both
students
love
of
the
outdoors
and
specifically
JS
who
wants
to
became
a
Park
Ranger.
I
believe
that
this
group
will
need
hands-
on,
real-life
connections
to
engage
in
the
content,
yet
moreover
I
want
to
make
sure
they
can
move
occasionally
because
many
of
them
are
active
in
sports.
After,
teaching
for
a
few
days
I
found
that
my
students
seemed
resistance
to
some
of
the
things
that
I
felt
would
work
based
on
their
interests.
Part
of
that
is
that
my
mentor
and
I
have
different
methods
of
teaching,
but
I
decided
to
give
the
students
a
Mindset
Assessment
to
see
their
thoughts
on
learning
itself.
In
Figure
9
below,
are
the
results
of
the
assessment
and
in
Figure
10
is
a
key
to
the
various
Mindset
numbers.
G2 F3
5% 14%
G1
33%
F2
14%
F1
34%
F3
F2
F1
G1
G2
Figure
9
F1
You
are
unsure
about
whether
you
can
change
your
intelligence.
You
care
about
your
performance
and
you
also
to
learn,
but
you
dont
really
want
to
have
to
work
too
hard
for
it.
You
are
unsure
about
whether
you
can
change
your
intelligence.
You
care
about
G1
F3
F2
G2
your
performance
and
you
also
to
learn,
but
you
dont
really
want
to
have
to
work
too
hard
for
it.
You
lean
toward
thinking
about
your
intelligence
doesnt
change
much.
You
prefer
not
to
make
mistakes
if
you
can
help
it
and
you
also
dont
really
like
to
put
in
a
lot
of
work.
You
may
think
that
learning
should
be
easy.
You
lean
toward
thinking
about
your
intelligence
doesnt
change
much.
You
prefer
not
to
make
mistakes
if
you
can
help
it
and
you
also
dont
really
like
to
put
in
a
lot
of
work.
You
may
think
that
learning
should
be
easy.
You
believe
that
your
intelligence
is
something
that
you
can
increase.
You
care
about
learning
and
youre
willing
to
work
hard.
You
do
want
to
do
well,
but
you
think
its
more
important
to
learn
than
to
always
perform
well.
Figure
10
I
found
that
many
of
the
students,
nearly
70%
(combined
F1
and
G1)
of
the
students,
are
unsure
about
if
they
change
their
intelligence.
But
moreover,
many
of
them
want
to
do
well
without
being
challenged.
This
would
be
considered
a
closed
mindset
in
many
ways
and
this
poses
a
challenge.
Ive
found
that
without
clear
expectations,
minimal
transitions
and
something
for
them
to
do
many
student
struggle
with
maintaining
focus.
My
mentor
teacher
and
I
have
discussed
that
I
need
to
cut
back
on
the
amount
of
activities
within
an
80-minute
class
period.
This
cuts
down
on
messy
transitions,
which
derail
students
focus.
I
feel
that
their
focus
issue
comes
from
three
reasons:
interest,
challenge
of
the
content,
and
mindset.
In
their
closed
mindset
my
students
are
struggling
to
see
the
worth
in
the
challenge
of
their
education,
they
simply
feel
they
need
to
pass
the
class
not
learn
the
content.
Again,
this
poses
a
challenge
for
me
and
thus
I
am
going
to
be
meeting
them
in
the
middle
so-to-speak.
I
am
going
to
have
more
book
work,
yet
focusing
on
primary
documents
and
various
other
media
rather
than
simply
textbooks.
I
will
occasionally
have
cooperative
work,
yet
space
it
out
so
its
mixed
style
of
classroom
as
many
times
students
seem
to
be
more
comfortable
having
more
notes
or
information
before
discussion.
To
help
challenge
students
in
a
way
that
they
would
be
comfortable
with,
I
will
try
to
use
project-based
learning.
In
this
model
I
will
have
students
show
their
knowledge,
in
a
summative
assessment,
as
a
project,
which
connects
the
students
interest
to
the
content
itself.
In
summative,
Ive
found
that
Skowhegans
community
heavily
impacts
the
nature
of
the
school
and
its
students.
Whether
its
in
regards
to
the
mascot
issue
or
the
heavy
love
of
sports,
Skowhegan
and
the
community
are
closely
tied
together.
Ive
found
that
this
can
be
a
great
asset
in
having
various
support
networks,
yet
sometimes
the
focus
of
the
community
of
Skowhegan
seems
to
drift
from
deep
learning
at
times.
To
this
end,
I
hope
that
my
interest-based
approach
will
be
able
to
mix
into
the
established
routine
of
the
two
classrooms
so
that
I
am
able
to
help
those
closed
mind
set
students
be
able
to
see
that
doing
lots
of
work
can
be
beneficial
to
their
goals
and
help
them
succeed
in
the
future.
To
do
so,
I
aim
to
be
able
to
include
community
supports
into
my
lesson
and
focus
my
United
States
history
to
have
more
relevance
to
their
daily
lives,
their
goals,
and
towards
bolstering
their
strengths.
All
the
students
in
my
classes
have
the
tools
and
the
skills
to
succeed,
if
they
are
able
to
change
their
mindsets
to
be
more
open
then
theyll
be
able
to
succeed
in
all
walks
of
life.
Works
Cited
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Tables
&
Calculators
by
Subject."
Bureau
of
Labor
Statistics
Data.
2014-
2015.
Web.
2016.
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from:
http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000
Gagnon,
Dawn.
"Skowhegan
Rallies
Focus
on
Indian
Mascot,
Columbus
Day
Disputes."
Bangor
Daily
News.
12
Oct.
2015.
Web.
2016.
Harlow,
Doug.
"Skowhegan
'Indians'
Mascot
Conflict
Continues
behind
the
Scenes."
Central
Maine.
28
June
2015.
Web.
2016.
Jensen,
Eric.
How
Poverty
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Educational
Leadership
(May
2013):
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Skowhegan.
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<http://www.mainstreetskowhegan.org/>.
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Maine
Department
of
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Erica.
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54
Offers
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Breakfast
to
All
Students
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High
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<http://www.msad54.org/sahs/>.
"Welcome
to
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