Interviews

When interviewing the struggling student, student "X", I received the following responses:

Q: Do you enjoy school?
A: Yeah

Q: What kind of student are you?
A: Quiet but friendly/respectful of my teachers

Q: What do you do for fun outside of school?
A: Play X-Box

Q: How would your classmates describe you?
A: Nice

Q: Who are you friends with? What do you and your friends do together?
A: I'm friends with Waylen, a kid in my neighborhood. We haven't seen each other a lot
     lately, but when we do see each other, we like to ride bikes and sometimes play
     basketball -eventhough I don't really like it because I'm not good at it.

Q: Tell me a good memory you have about school.
A: I have never forgotten the kids in my fifth grade class.

Q: Tell me a bad memory you have about school.
A: I try not to remember those.

Q: Describe a "good" teacher or tell me about a favorite teacher you had in the past,
A: Mrs. Zorik was my favorite teacher; she was nice.

Q: What is one thing you wish your teacher knew about you?
A: (could not think of a response)

Student  "X" is rather quiet; he distances himself from peers and teachers -never engaging in anything related to social interaction (not even when it comes to participating in class). I learned that when you take the time to speak to him on a one-on-one basis, he is more receptive to speaking and sharing. It is when you take the time to acknowledge him and show him that you care about him as a student and as a person (by questioning, encouraging responses, and sharing your experiences) that he begins to open up. He needs to feel accepted and appreciated before he can take the risk of engaging in a social situation. I learned from my host teacher that he has not been given many opportunities to engage in any extra-curricular activities or sports outside of school, and I think that is to blame for his lack of social skills.



When interviewing the high-performing student, student "Y", I received the following responses:

Q: Do you enjoy school?
A: Not really

Q: What kind of student are you?
A: Good

Q: What do you do for fun outside of school?
A: Play soccer and basketball

Q: How would your classmates describe you?
A: Kind

Q: Who are you friends with? What do you and your friends do together?
A: Geno, Gavin, Dominick...play sports

Q: Tell me a good memory you have about school.
A: In the third grade, we used to do a lot of science experiments; I liked those.

Q: Tell me a bad memory you have about school.
A: (could not think of a response)

Q: Describe a "good" teacher or tell me about a favorite teacher you had in the past,
A: Mrs. Albertson....She was nice, and we did a lot of activities with movement that I
     thought were fun.

Q: What is one thing you wish your teacher knew about you?
A: I like hands-on stuff!

Student "Y" is usually very sociable, with both his peers and teachers, but not in a way that has ever been disruptive. He knows when to socialize and when to listen, but during this interview, he seemed more on the listening side than the talking side. He seemed rather reserved. I learned that when he is placed in a more intimate setting (as I interviewed both students alone in the hallway), he becomes more uncomfortable and less responsive.