1

EDFD 308/460/461
FUNDS OF KNOWLEDGE
SELF-INVESTIGATION
(Dr. Nicholas Wysocki)

1) Complete the required Citation section at the bottom of the table!!
2) Bring a hard copy of this document to the next class period and also submit a
digital copy into the D2L Assignment Box.

Name: Jordan Ott
Group #: 4

Post a clear picture of yourself in the
corresponding right column.

What unique knowledge base(s) do you I feel like I have unique knowledge by
feel you possess? How did you come to knowing a medium amount of information
acquire this specific knowledge? about lots of different topics such as
anatomy & physiology or math, instead of
being full of knowledge on one topic. I
gained this from high school by taking
many different elective courses to gain
knowledge of a wide variety of things.
What skill set do you feel most proud of at The skill set that I feel most proud of at this
this point in your life? How did you come part in my life is my ability to manage my
to develop these skills? time wisely and how to plan my days or
weeks in order to complete all of the
necessary tasks. I gained my ability to
manage my time during the period after my
parents’ divorce, which was right during
the start of elementary school. After my
parents separated, I was not allowed to do
my homework at my dad’s house, for
reasons I am still not entirely sure of.
However, due to this I would always do any
 2
of my necessary work prior to leaving to go
to my dad’s house. Eventually this system
transformed into doing every task as soon
as possible instead of waiting to do it later.
This has helped a lot with college because I
feel like I am more stress free than most of
my peers because of my ability to manage
my time well.

What experiences do you feel best shape The first experience that shapes who I am
your sense of self? Why? is my parents’ divorce. Since I grew up
bouncing back and forth between parents’ I
picked up the good qualities of both of
them instead of spending more time with
one person and acquiring a lot of their
qualities good or bad. I got time
management and planning from my mom,
and strength and determination from my
dad. All of the qualities that I gained from
them as a child have made me into who I
am today.
Another experience that has shaped who I
am is my volunteering work that I have
done for a large portion of my life. When I
was only 10 years old, I started
volunteering at a special education
preschool. At this preschool I discovered
my passion for teaching, and I continued to
volunteer at different schools and events as
a supervisor, teacher, or assistant teacher.
This has shaped my sense of self because it
gave me a direction. This experience, as
well as the ones that it lead to, are the
reason that I learned I want to become a
math teacher.
What activities do you engage in, on a Teaching is one of the activities that helps
regular basis, that best characterize you as characterize me as a person. I am a leader
a person? at a summer camp, at this camp I teach
children different activities, assist them
with their problems, and help them to
become good leaders in the future. I also
teach by being a substitute
paraprofessional and giving the students
the extra help that they may need to
achieve outcomes that are amazing.
Teaching is also present in my on-campus
job, tutoring, where I get to help show
students ways to problem solve and find
solutions to their difficult homework.
 3
Another item I have fallen away from
because of my college career is
volunteering. My work as a volunteer
helped make me into who I am today by
giving me a voice and showing me how to
lead. I still volunteer about 30 hours a year
but that is nothing compared to the 100-
200 hours I used to do in high school
during my free time.
Describe the kinds of occupations held by In elementary school my parents were in
members of your household(s) as you their younger 20s, divorced, in debt from
transitioned from elementary school college, and had two small children. My
through high school? mother worked as a teacher, at target, and
at a day care in order to afford the day to
day expenses that children provided. My
father worked a construction job at a
roofing company at this time.
Throughout elementary school and middle
school my dad moved from job to job
frequently, failing to keep employment for
even a year at a time but always working in
some kind of construction. During this
same period my mom kept all three of the
jobs that she had, especially since my dad’s
loss and gain of jobs made a very
financially unstable environment for me
and my brother.
When high school came around both of my
parents found new significant others. They
both became financially stable in this
period of time. My mother has been a
paraprofessional since my freshman year
of high school and hopes to continue this as
her only job until retirement. My father at
this time decided to start a new company,
which worked for him in the beginning but
then slowly faded like all of his past jobs
had. He still owns this company, but he
does not enjoy it. He is actively looking for
new employment options, like he has been
doing for my entire life.
Also, in high school I volunteered at many
schools, worked at a summer camp that I
still work at, and worked at a sub shop I
only worked at for one month.
My biological brother, Brenden, had a job
at a gas station, a car dealership, and a
supermarket. He started a new job this
year for the City of Saint Cloud.
 4
My step brother, Jd, worked as a lawn
mower for the City of Cold Spring. He is
currently unemployed.
My step brother, Ty, worked as a lawn
mower for the City of Rockville and the
church, as well as was a financial analyst
for a hospital. He is currently working at
Midwest Machinery.
What social networks of people were Mom’s House:
important to the members of your One of the people that were very important
household(s) as you were growing up? to my household was my grandparents.
Why? They would help babysit me and my
brother, buy us clothes, help pay for school
supplies, and play games with us on school
nights that my mom needed to sleep for
work.
My uncle was also very important because
my family lived with him for a short period
of time while I was a toddler and my
mother was getting her Bachelor’s Degree.
He would watch us during the day and then
work later at night when my mom was
done with her classes.
During elementary school my best friend
Emily and her family were also a big social
network. My mother would drop us off at
their house at 3 am on her way to stock
shelfs at target. They would let us sleep in
their house, feed us breakfast in the
morning, and my bus stop was at their
house instead of my own.
Throughout middle school until now the
main social network is the group we call
the baseball group. These people are the
parents of my stepbrother’s baseball
teammates as well as all of their children.
We have card parties once a month every
month since middle school. These people
are all very supportive of each other and
help each other with any task they may
need.
Dad’s House:
At my dad’s house we were very isolated
during my childhood. He never had friends
over, my grandma was always busy, and
my grandfather died before I was born. My
dad worked a lot when I was at his house,
so my brother and I only had each other as
a social network. We lived in a dangerous
part of Saint Cloud so we would not leave
 5
the block that our house was on. We had
some friends with the neighbors but that
was it.

List your Teaching Licensure area(s) here:
Mathematics (5-12)

Provide the hyperlink to a source that provides you with a list of academic content
standards required at the grade level(s) you would like to teach (i.e., what are teachers or
learners supposed to know or be able to do)

URL(S):
I would like to Teach 9-12th grade.
https://education.mn.gov/mdeprod/groups/educ/documents/hiddencontent/bwrl/mdm0/~edisp/md
e034460.pdf



Provide below the typed APA citation of 2-4 academic journal article sources (Published
2000 – Present) examining the Funds of Knowledge approach in your Teacher Licensure
area(s).

Harding- DeKam J. L. (2014, October 20). How Do I Teach Mathematics in a Culturally
Responsive Way? Identifying and Empowering Teaching Practices. Retrieved from
https://www.cogentoa .com/article/10.1080/2331186X.2014.972676.pdf.
Hernandez, C. M., Morales, A. R., & Shroyer, M. G. (2013, October 10). The Development of a
Model of Culturally Responsive Science and Mathematics Teaching. Retrieved from
http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=53c188c7-
f654-45c1-a70c-352d52b789f9@sdc-v-sessmgr01