Struggling Student Interview

Do you enjoy school?

"Yes."

What kind of student are you?

"I do my homework, but I really don't like to."

What do you do for fun outside of school?

"On the computer I like to read this web comic called Home-stark but I like to [also] go outside and play with my friends."

How would your classmates describe you?

"I think they like me.  I've matured since last year."

What do you and your friends do together?

"Me and [friend's name] like to draw and talk and get on get on people's nerves.  And my friend at home, we like to kick the ball and play basketball and stuff."

Tell me a good memory you have about school.

"I remember once in kindergarten, I was so smart they wanted to put me in third grade, but my dad wouldn't let them, obviously."

Tell me a bad memory you have about school.

"In fourth and second grade, my teacher called all of us ignorant."

Tell me about a favorite teacher you had in the past.

"In first grade I had [teacher's name].  I liked her."

So you would say she's a "good" teacher?

"Yeah"

What makes her a good teacher?

"She was funny.  She never gave us homework, even if we had a little bit of work left. We forgot to bring snack, and she had a trash bag full of gummies and crackers and stuff and gave them to us."

What is one thing you wish your teacher knew about you?

"I like to be called Solix."


From what I've observed of this student, she is very quiet and she doesn't often volunteer to answer questions or do problems.  My teacher starts off every lesson with select students coming up to the board and doing latitude and longitude problems.  In the time that I've been in this classroom, she has never once gone up to the board to do a problem.  She seems very excited about school, though.  I can't understand why she would be struggling, and had my teacher not told me that she was, I never would have pinned her as one.  There are several other students within this class and the others that I observe that would seem more likely to me.  Today they took a quiz on latitude and longitude, and she had no trouble finishing it around the same time as the other students did.  She even had time to sit and draw on the back of her test.  She seems to me that she is very smart, so I have to wonder what might be happening that is causing her to struggle.  I feel she is a good student and that she tries.  Perhaps she simply needs to apply herself more, but I honestly don't know.