The Vehicle for Addressing Students Needs

"A just society is one in which men and women, rich and poor, the gifted and the handicapped have an equal opportunity to use and to increase all their abilities, each according to her or his talents"  Csikszentmihalyi, Rathunde, & Whalen, 1993

How can we as teachers help to create a just society for all those we are tasked to teach?  The answer is that we must prepare and present instruction that allows every student to learn and grow.  How can we do this.  As a teacher we need to do the following,

1) Make sure that the lessons are of value and pertain to the subject being taught
2) Capture the interest of the students in the class and encourage curiosity
3) Allow each and every student has the chance to share their thoughts on the subject with out fear of ridicule
4) Push the students, cheer for the students, coach the students, mentor the students, partner with the students in their education, and set an example for every student.

It is imperative that as a teacher we make sure that all of our curriculum and instruction meet each of the 4 criteria listed above.  This can be done by making sure each lesson is important, focused, engaging, demanding and scaffolded to the students ensuring the maximum likelihood that each learner and student will obtain the content being taught.