Fieldwork Observation

For this fieldwork report, I had the privilege of observing my high school Radio and Broadcasting teacher. I graduated from Piper High School in 2013 and I had Mr. Jon Farley as my Radio and Broadcasting teacher for two years. Radio and Broadcasting provide students with instruction in radio broadcasting and management. Piper High School is one of the few schools that allows students to run a live radio station. According to the course syllabus, “WKPX is a real live radio station broadcasting to all Broward County and part of Dade and Palm Beach with 10,000 plus listeners. The radio program gives students the opportunity to help run a live radio station”.
This very program is broken down into a numerous courses, ranging from introductory courses
Mr. Farley is one of the few teachers who deals with a range of students from diverse racial and educational backgrounds. He has been working at Piper high school for over 30 years, so he has seen the adaptation and changes the school has undergone. Without Mr. Farley the radio station would probably close down and many passionate students would not be happy about it. Mr. Farley stresses the importance of “keeping the peace” with not only his students' but also faculty and staff. After talking to a few students I came to know that many of them feel comfortable around Mr. Farley as he goes out of his way to make sure he puts his students needs first. Mr. Farley is also very passionate about what he does so, he makes it a priority that the radio station is running at full potential and that the students who have been assigned to station managers are the ones who put the safety of the radio station first. However, Mr. Farley still needs to improve his discipline techniques. As the radio station is full of electronic equipment, there were still a few students who were rough housing. Not only is this dangerous for the students, but it may also lead to the destruction of school property. Additionally a major rule that Mr. Farley stressed is to prevent the drawing of graffiti on the counters and equipment. However, many of the counters had pornographic drawings and writing on them. Lastly, as students are encouraged to go on air and be disk jockeys, they are told to refrain from using profanity. Mr. Farley had to tell numerous students to watch their