CFE Reflection – Week 1
This week I had the amazing opportunity to start my volunteer shifts at the Fraser Park corrections facility. I admit that I came into the experience with a number of preconceived notions about what I would experience during this particular CFE, but I have found that many of those views have not been true. Most of the students that I have personally interacted with have been very pleasant and friendly, and as the week went on, the students have started opening up to me more.
Most of the students don’t ask for any help with the coursework when they are in my classes, which I imagine is mainly because they have public images that they want to have maintained, and asking for help would go against how they see themselves and how others see them. This has led me to simply give the students help right at the beginning of class and introduce myself as the person who will be helping them through their coursework for the day, instead of asking them later on in the class if they need help, which would make them look bad in front of their peers. This seems to work well, and once I begin to help the students, they don’t seem to have any problems with my being there. In terms of the actual coursework, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the work the students do is the same as what would be taught in a public high school. I had assumed beforehand that the students at Fraser Park would be doing coursework with serious adaptations to it, similar to the essentials or core classes offered in public schools.
In many ways, I enjoy teaching in the corrections facility more than I enjoyed teaching in my practicum school because of the greater amount of individualized attention I am able to give to my students. Most of my previous education employment was in tutoring and summer camps with small class sizes, so I am much more used to teaching in small groups like how classes are taught at Fraser Park. I appreciate the ability to individualize my teaching for each student and to have an opportunity to build a stronger relationship between the students and myself. I feel that I have been successful in creating these connections, as I have been invited by a small group of the students that I work with to visit them in their housing unit. While I am apprehensive about the potential experience, I think that it will ultimately be beneficial to me to take up the students’ offer, and I look forward to doing so sometime this coming week.
There was one event that occurred during the week that I felt particularly proud of being part of. One of the students at Fraser Park completed their graduation requirements, and on Friday the staff arranged to have a graduation ceremony for the student. I felt that it was very well done to have the graduation ceremony and show the importance of the event for the student. As the school principal pointed out, this is a milestone in the student’s life, and celebrating that milestone send the message that it is important, which is something that the student will hopefully keep with them as they go through life. That kind of positive reinforcement can only benefit the student in the future.
I have learned very quickly that something is always happening at Fraser Park, and I’m looking forward to the next couple of weeks and learning more about how to work with their diverse learners.