Competency 7A

8/10/2019 Competency 7A

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DECISION-MAKING SCAFFOLD

CASE STUDY: SAM MEYERSEDU6304 The School Multicultural American Society

Barrett Weaver


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KEY

CH R CTERS


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THE SCHOOL

HOWE ELEMENTARY

Majority of families are from the lower socioeconomic level

Located in a suburban area of a popular vacation destination

Most of families are Conservative ChristianMajority of parents worked 2ndor 3rdshift in tourism industry

Many parents didnt have formal education past 12thgrade

as jobs were available in tourism industry upon high

school graduation


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SAM MEYERS

Middle aged male

Spent most of his career as a hospital clerk

Legally blind (degenerative eye disease) & wears glasses

First year teacher

Elementary teacher

Special Education teacher

Will work with Autistic students

New to district

Homosexual who openly discusses his relationship & partner


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HANNAH

Sams mentor teacher at Howe Elementary

In her 9thyear of teaching

First year in elementary special education

Enrolled in Doctoral special education program at local university Sam is her first mentee


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JULIA

Sams classroom assistant

Conservative Christian

Considered a straight arrow by the staff

Conversations with co-workers revolve around church

activities and Christian faith

Devoted to family and mother of 4

Been an assistant in the classroom for two years


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MILEY

Sams classroom assistant

Married mother of 2

Member of Conservative Christian church

More liberal than Julia

Drank, used profanity, had tattoos

Been in the classroom as an assistant for a year


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MRS. MOREHEAD

Principal of Howe Elementary

Second year principal (both years at Howe)

Parents are skeptical of her because she is muchdifferent than the previous principal

Received several good reports from the first-grade

teacher Sam did his student teaching with


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JOEYS MOM

K N NCY

Mother of Joey, a student in Sams special education

class for students with autism

Concerned parent who questioned if a gay man could

teach and how it would affect her sonDiscusses her concerns with her husband who has the

same concerns and decides to inform the principal

Reassured by the principal that Sam is a good teacher

and everything is fine


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SEQUENCE OF EVENTS &

PROBLEMS WITHIN

-Hannah reassures Sam that everything will be alright. Although she couldnt

believe it either, her advice is to talk to Mrs. Morehead and tell her about the

conversation, maybe she can help

-Sam is afraid to contact Mrs. Morehead. It is his first teaching job and hedoesnt want to mess it up.


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KEY QUESTIONS

What are the issues regardingsexual or ientat ion that Sam , the

o ther teachers , the fam il ies, andschool must address?

What are the beliefs about sexualor ientat ion held by the major

stakeho lders in the case?


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KEY QUESTIONS

What legal precedents andestabl ished standards of pract ice

can be used as gu idelines for thoseinvolved?

What resources and suppo rts are

avai lable fo r Sam, the fam ily

invo lved, and the school d ist r ic t?


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KEY QUESTIONS

What sho rt-term and long-term goals

can be set that wil l ass ist al l part ies todeal with sim i lar si tuat ions in the

future?


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ADDRESSING THE

ISSUES:

PL N OF CTION


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GOAL 1

Kill the Problem: Internally/ExternallyTIMELINE: IMMEDIATELY TO YEARLY

- Mrs. Morehead will need to meet with Sam, Hannah, Miley, andJulia privately and inform them of everyones rights andresponsibilities individually, and the rights and responsibilities of

the school.

- Mrs. Morehead will need to assure Sam that discrimination will notbe tolerated on her campus by faculty, staff, or parents.

- A team approach with parents and other faculty will need to beadopted by the teachers within this ONE classroom in order to

keep order.

- Mrs. Morehead will need to set up a meeting with the parents ofJoey and address their concerns one on one, and inform them ofthe schools legal responsibility and the district policy on the issue.


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GOAL 2

Educate The Campus & CommunityTIMELINE: WITHIN THE FIRST TWO WEEKS EACH YEAR

-As an administrator, Mrs. Morehead should provideinformative seminars for the faculty and staff educating themon the law and reminding them of constitutional rights within

-Stakeholders of Howe Elementary and community membersshould be given informative seminars to help educate every

associated party

-Offer the seminars every year and have lead teachers andPTA heavily involved


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GOAL 3

Plan for the FutureTIMELINE: WITHIN THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF SCHOOL & YEARLY

-Mrs. Morehead will need to have Sam, Miley, and Julia

take initiative throughout the year to build relationshipswith parents and use them the next year to share their

testimonies

-Have the Special Education Department adopt meet the

classroom night before meet the teacher night in aneffort for parents and students to share their experiences

and positive words


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ADDITIONAL

RECCOMENDATIONS

-Mrs. Morehead should contact other principals and hersuperintendant to receive some insight and input from otherswho may have experienced the same issues from anadministrative viewpoint

-Sam and Mrs. Morehead should do their homework to findprevious legal cases against school districts to help educatethem of their rights and the rights of parents/students

-Mrs. Morehead can contact the region or state site to find

resources for educating all stakeholders within her campus.These resources should be offered yearly and new ones shouldbe implemented every year.


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Taylor, Lorraine S., and Catharine Whittaker.

Bridging Multiple Worlds Case Studies of

Diverse Educational Communities.Massachusetts: Allyn & Bacon, 2009.

Public Schools and Sexual Orientation;A First Amendment framework for finding

common ground.http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/madison/wp-

content/uploads/2011/03/sexual.orientation.guidelines.pdf

RESOURCES

Competency 7A

Documents