Teaching What are three rewards and three challenges that you will face as a teacher?

As a rabid student of popular culture, I have been interested in the so-called "achievement gap" in education, popularized in the media, the political spectrum, and even within contemporary business culture. There is clearly a demonstrable gap in educational relevancy; second, there are basic skills that are absolutely vital in order to participate in the modern global village that are not universal with the U.S. educational environment. Scholarship also points out that the earlier the attention to this "gap," the earlier the attention to potential reading disabilities, and the earlier the intervention towards socialization issues, the higher rate of success and inclusion. This, too, engenders challenges within the profession. For instance, today's classrooms are more diverse than ever, they are multi-dimensional as well. To help fill the gap, teachers need to be able to jump into different roles at an instant: friend, colleague, parent, educator, and more. "If I only had time to teach," Is a common teacher lament (Kauchak and Eggen, p. 11).

Students today have considerable technological advantages from students of even a few decades ago. Computers, the Internet, multi-media, laptops, and video-conferencing -- all have the potential to...

However, with the increase in technology, often some of the very basic skills remain at the remedial level. According to some scholarship, the standard of required global literacy in math, science, reading, and analytical skills has risen throughout the developed world, but unfortunately, American literacy rates have not risen to meet this standard. Literacy is not simply a hoped for requirement in modern society -- it is a necessity, and every student who graduates High School without the basic skill set is a financial and social burden upon the rest of society. This is another challenge, for it requires a specialized body of knowledge that includes not only complex content materials, but a high degree of pedagogical expertise and the ability to remain current in trends surrounding the profession (Kauchak and Eggen, p. 14).
I am a lifelong student, and each year realize how many wonderful new ideas need exploring; how many exciting and vital places visited through reading; and how much joy I receive simply by having the right set of tools that allow me to read, research, study, analyze, and make decisions based on information. I believe I can communicate this excitement to children, and with the challenges they will face as global citizens, help them prepare for an increasingly rigorous curriculum. I am also quite aware that the personality and nature of the instructor has a phenomenal impact upon younger students -- what a better time…