University of Puerto Rico at Humacao English Department

Nucleus Study: Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School

Gurabo, Puerto Rico

María Edith Jordán Gómez 842-07-3993

EDPE-4006-001 Dr. Aníbal Muñoz Claudio

January 24, 2013

Table of Contents

Background Information 1

Content and Areas of Observation

-Content

-Purpose

2

Areas of Observation

-School Organization

3

-Curriculum Programs

-Sports Programs

4

-Facilities

-School Diagram

5

-Personnel

-Students

6

-Students’ Places of Origin

-Attendance

-Organizations

7

Reaction

-School Strengths

-Areas for Improvements

8

Conclusion 9-10

Appendix 1: School Fire Escape Plan Diagram 11

University of Puerto Rico - Humacao

English Department María Edith Jordán Gómez January 24, 2013 842-07-3993 EDPE-4006-001

Nucleus Study: Dr. Aníbal Muñoz Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School

Gurabo, Puerto Rico

I. Background Information:

1. Educational Region: Caguas

2. Regional Supervisor: Margarita Gonzalez

3. School District: Gurabo

4. School Superintendent: Melva Rivera

5. School: Dra. Conchita Cuevas

6. Level: High School (10th to 12th grade)

7. School Director: Magda Resto

8. Cooperating Teacher: Eduardo Martinez

9. Group: 11th- 12th grade

Dra. Conchita Cuevas High School is the only secondary school of the Gurabo school

district. It belongs to the educational region of Caguas, under the supervision of Mrs. Margarita

Gonzalez. The school level is from 10th to 12th grade, with a total of 679 students officially

matriculated. The school superintendent is Mrs. Melva Rivera. She is in charge of appointing the

school staff directly under her and supervising the schools to ensure all of the staff is functioning

effectively in their roles. The school director is Mrs. Magda Resto. She was a former English

teacher at the school. My cooperating teacher is Mr. Eduardo Martínez. He has been a teacher

for over 20 years, and even taught at Turabo University. His groups at Dra. Conchita Cuevas High

School are 11th and 12th grade. He has three 12th grade groups and three 11th grade groups. The

group I will be teaching during this semester is 12-1. They take English class at 9:00 am. It is a

group composed of 29 young adults. There are 13 young men, and 16 young women. This is their

last semester of high school before graduation.

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II. Content and Areas of Observation

A. Content

Brief Description of Content and Sources of Information:

The following Nucleus Study contains information describing Dr. Conchita Cuevas High

School. It contains information about the school’s educational offerings, extra-curricular activities,

infrastructure, students, and personnel. The main source of information for this document was the

school’s principal, Mrs. Magda Resto, during a formal interview at Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School

in her office on January 16, 2013. There was also information from my cooperating teacher, Mr.

Eduardo Martínez, during our orientation periods and my personal observations as I toured the

school building. This document illustrates the different features of the school in an organized

manner. It allows for anyone who wants to know the school a chance to look at its operations.

Purpose:

It is important for me to know everything that the school has to offer and its limitations as

well. If I have this information, I know what my students have available to them and also what I

can do to make their environment more adequate to facilitate learning. For example, what types

of technologies they have available, how functional is the school library, what conditions are the

recreational and sanitary areas, and more. All of these can affect the student in many ways. The

school should be a clean and resourceful place. After all, the students do spend more time in

school than at home. It is also important to know the school personnel, because they are

colleagues who work to facilitate learning for the same students, therefore we should be on the

same page. This is no small task that should never be taken lightly, that is why a school’s

personnel should be a team of professionals working together to make the school the best place it

can be for the students. The information on this Nucleus Study was collected in order to get to

know the school I will be working in until May 2013.

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B. Areas of Observation

1. School Organization-

The director explained that the Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School follows a simple school

organization. The school belongs to the Caguas Region. All of the schools of this region are

supervised by Mrs. Margarita Gonzalez. The school superintendent is Mrs. Melva Rivera. The

school principal is Mrs. Magda Resto, working along with her in the school office are one

administration auxiliary worker, and two secretaries. There are forty five teachers, one social

worker, one counselor, four custodians, six lunch room staff, and three security guards.

2. Curriculum Programs:

Regular Students and

Vocational Students

Elective Courses

Vocational Students

Advanced Program

English Health Mechanics English

Spanish Paternity Cosmetology Spanish

History Theater/Corporal Movement Plumbing Mathematics

Mathematics Physical Education Secretary of Accounting

Science General Secretary

As shown in Figure 1, the school offers a regular curriculum with vocational offerings.

There are mandatory courses for students matriculated in the regular and vocational programs.

These courses are English, Spanish, history, mathematics, and science. The elective courses are:

School Superintendent: Melva Rivera School Principal: Magda Resto

Teachers (45)

Counselor

Social Worker

Secretary: Lisette Candelaria

Custodians (4)

Lunch Room Staff (6) Security Guards (3)

Administration Auxiliary

Regional Supervisor: Margarita Gonzalez

Figure 1: School Organization

Figure 2: Curriculum Programs

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health, paternity, theater/corporal movement, and physical education. These courses follow the

Puerto Rico Department of Education Content Standards and Grade Level Expectations, and the

Curricular Maps. The vocational offerings are students: mechanics, cosmetology, plumbing,

secretary of accounting, and general secretary. There are also advanced courses for the excelled

students. These include: AP English, Spanish, and Mathematics.

3. Sports Programs:

The school has a Basketball and

Volleyball team. The coaches are teachers at the

school who decided to take on these roles in

order for the school to be able to have teams. As an after school program, my cooperating

teacher, Mr. Eduardo Martínez offers Karate/Self Defense. The school has limited funds for sports,

and they are in need of equipment and uniforms for the teams.

4. Facilities:

The Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School is located right off the Gurabo exit of highway 30. Its

fully gated and guarded by one security guard. The other two security guards supervise the

interiors and exteriors of the school. The school only provides parking for the teachers and staff.

This parking is located in front of the school. The schools main entrance has a round street, for

drop offs and pick-ups. It has benches for the student’s use. The main building has three stories

(See Figure 4: School Diagram, and appendix 1: Fire Escape Diagram) . You can notice that the

building is shaped like a triangle. The main entrance takes you to the second floor. To the right is

the school office, to the left is the counselor’s office, and there are classrooms all along the

building’s sides. Bathrooms are located on the right side of the building on the three floors. The

second floor has a ramp that leads to the first floor. The first floor hosts the library, lunch room,

Teams After School Program

Basketball Karate

Volleyball

Figure 3: Sports Programs

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special education room, and a few other classrooms. On the far end of the building there is an

entrance to the physical education room, cosmetology room, plumbing room, mechanics room,

and covered court. The third floor has a total of 17 classrooms all along the triangle shape.

5. School Diagram: (See appendix I for fire escape diagram)

Main

Buliding

(3 floors)

Physical Education

and

Vocational School

Covered Court

Teacher Parking

Figure 4: School Diagram

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6. Personnel:

Personnel Number of Personnel

Teachers 45

Counselor 1

Secretaries 2

Administration Auxiliary 1

Librarian 1

Lunch Room Staff 6

Custodians 4

Security Guards 3

The school Personnel is composed of 45 teachers for 678 students. 1 counselor for 678

students, 2 secretaries, 1 administration auxiliary, 1 librarian, 6 lunch room staff, 4 custodians, and

3 security guards. Although they are few in number, these professionals are dedicated to their

jobs, and do what they can with what they have. The school truly is a community.

7. Student: (total: 678 students)

Enrollment: 678 are officially enrolled for this school

semester. The tenth grade group is the largest, with 243 students

in total. Of these 243 students 135 are female and 108 are males.

That’s a total of 27 more females than males in this grade. In 11th

grade there are 206 students. Of these 206 students 116 are

female and 90 are male. That’s a total of 26 more females than

males. In 12th grade there are 225 students. Of these 225, 114 are female and 11 are

male. That’s a total of 3 more females than males. You can notice in the student

enrollment that there are more females than males. Overall there are 54 more females

than males. These numbers that are reflected in High School are the ones you see

reflected in colleges as well. There are less male students due to many different factors,

the most predominant being drug related issues.

Grade Number of Students

Totals

Female Male

10th 135 108 243

11th 116 90 206

12th 114 111 225

Special Education

1 3 4

All 366 312 678

Figure 5: Personnel

Figure 6: Students

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Places of Origin: Gurabo, Caguas, San Lorenzo, Las Piedras, Juncos. The students enrolled

in this school all live in Gurabo or its neighboring towns. Because of the school’s central

location, it makes it easy for students of neighboring towns to attend the school. Because

it is the only high school is Gurabo, the majority of the students are from Gurabo.

Attendance: The director of the school, Mrs. Magda Resto informed that there is a chronic

pattern of absences and tardiness among the students and the teachers. The second day

of school alone, 8 teachers were absent. This is a very serious problem the school has had

for some time.

Organizations: Student organizations include: Spanish Club, Environmental Science Club

(Nueva Era), Young Christian Students Organization, Basketball and Volleyball teams, and

After School Karate. The school also participates in the “Character Counts” Program (Tus

Valores Cuentan). In addition to these activities, once a year the school has a sort of

academic “field day” they call the Academic Olympics. It is done before the Puerto Rican

exams to give the students a review and get them motivated and de-stressed before the

exams. The teachers do all the preparation for this event in which the groups compete

against each other.

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III. Reaction:

School’s Strength:

There are many different aspects that make the Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School a great

school. First of all, the school has a great staff! The principal, Mrs. Magda Resto is completely

dedicated to her school and students, making the school environment a much better place for the

personnel and the students. From my observations, most teachers seem very dedicated to their

jobs as well. They know how to manage their classrooms, and are experts at the subjects they

teach. The security guards, although few, are excellent at their jobs from my observations so far.

Security is very important to create an effective learning environment. The school is large, so it

complies with the number of students attending the school. It doesn’t feel crowded; there is

enough space for everyone. Overall, I see a team atmosphere in the school. There is good

communication within the personnel, which is very important. Finally, what I believe is the biggest

strength of the school is the students! The groups I have observed are great. They are respectful

towards their teachers. They like to have fun, but what teenager doesn’t. They are active

participators, which is what makes the school work!

Areas for improvements:

The Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School has many strengths, but it also has many areas that I

believe need improvement. First, the building needs seriously deep cleansing. From the gum

filled pavements to the dirty walls, it really needs a makeover. This makeover should not only be

for the outside of the school. The classrooms also need some serious work. Also, I’m not sure if

some of them violate any fire safety laws, because they are jam packed with desks. Most of the

chalk boards in the classroom are impossible to write on because they are so old. So definitely the

school needs new materials. The school sports teams have no uniforms; they compete in t-shirts,

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which really lowers their motivation. Also, they don’t have equipment to practice with; teachers

have to buy any materials they may need. The largest area that needs improvement in my

opinion is that the students need more support academically and personally. They need academic

help in the form of tutoring. Help with homework, projects, and study habits. The school needs

more counselors. There is only one counselor for 678 students, who is absolutely busy all the

time. These suggestions were said to me by an 11th grade student of the school, which means that

many students do care about their school and their futures.

IV. Conclusion

The Dr. Conchita Cuevas High School is a new chapter in my life. So far, my partner

Emmanuelle and my integration to the school has been smooth. This school will affect my

professional development because it is my training site before I am a graduated and certified as a

teacher. I will learn the regulations of a school from the personnel’s perspective, which is a world

of difference from the student’s perspective.

I am only beginning with my practice teaching experience, and already it has had a huge

impact on me. To be honest, this is my first experience in a public school in Puerto Rico. All I could

think of were all of the negative stereotypes that exist of the schools. My only pictures of a public

school were all of the negative news about strikes, violence, disrespectful students, and more. I

have to say that although the school has its problems, it is a great school. The stereotypes are

forever broken in my mind. Thanks to it, I have gained the hope that those schools that do have

these chronic problems can improve. It also has to do with the way the media portrays this school,

emphasis is always given to the bad, but you never hear positive stories about a school, its

students, teachers, and personnel. Years back, this school was the third most violent school in

Puerto Rico; in the past year no more than three violent instances occurred. That is a huge

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improvement! The students are great, very artistic and musical. They are outspoken, which is

good because they are active participators. They deserve better materials and a cleaner

environment to excel, because I have seen such a potential in them that I thought I wouldn’t see in

such great volumes. These possible changes can improve their motivation to do better in school,

to want to continue a higher education, and to be more responsible, active, and productive

members of society.

The school director, cooperating teacher, and other personnel have been so welcoming and

helpful, that it has been a breeze being in that school. I can tell they treat each other with the

same respect and care that they have treated us. They are a great example of how school

personnel should interact. The only negative aspect that the director explained to us is their

absences. Some teachers are absent very often, that is not a good example for the students, who

also take absences lightly.

My experience at the center will help me experience these and other problems schools face.

It will help me find strategies to deal with these problems. It will give me a guided experience,

which I desperately need in order to be able to successfully do it on my own. I am so happy that I

got to do my practice teaching in this center, with my very experienced and highly qualified

cooperating teacher, and with such a supportive and involved director. Not to mention the

excellent students I will be working with, which are seniors! I am also glad I am with my partner

Emmanuelle Soto; we will make an excellent team in facilitating the student’s learning.

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Appendix 1:

School Fire Escape Plan Diagram

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