There are many major issues that need to be addressed when discussing the field of education. There is the issue of the special needs students and the students that are at risk, the issue of multicultural and multilingual students, and the issue that parents/guardians should be involved in the students' learning.
With the special needs students and the ones at risk there are many different options that have to be observed. These types of students are going to make your job as a teacher more challenging, but you have to remember not to ever give up on them. While participating in a mentoring program at Model Elementary school I encountered a few special needs students, but none that were at risk. The student that I worked with the most often was a special needs student. She was not what I would consider a "special needs" student, but she did need extra help and encouragement to get her work done and to stay on task. I have to admit that helping this fifth grade girl was a strenuous and demanding task, and at times I did want to just leave, but I had to stick with her so she can learn as all her peers are. Thus far in my mentoring project I have noticed that this young girl has began to improve in the areas that I have been assisting her with, which make my long hours with her completely worthwhile.
There are also the students that are multicultural and/or multilingual. Being able to converse with these students is a major issue. As a teacher you will have to be able to transform and redirect your lesson plans and curriculum to be able to accommodate these students. I would also advise that you be able to speak these students" language to make them feel like they are in a more "at home" environment, or at least be able to say a few phrases to them. While I was completing my mentoring project, the classroom that I was placed in did not have any multicultural or multilingual students.
