A  student is an individual enrolled in a school, college, or university. A student is actively engaged in learning and pursuing an education. All students have different rationales for why they may be pursuing a wide range of academic and personal goals. Their reasoning may be rooted in tradition, required by state policy, or may be a personal quest to acquire new knowledge and skills.  A student’s educational journey can help them to develop critical thinking and problem-solving abilities, prepare for a career, or pursue personal interests and passions.

Students come from diverse backgrounds and have varying learning needs and styles. Educators play an important role in mentoring, supporting, and guiding students in their learning journey. Teachers help provide students with the tools necessary to help the student succeed.

Extracurricular activities, such as sports, music, drama, or community service are also an important part of being a student. Activities that are not a part of the “curricular” classroom help students develop into social beings. Participation in group activities involving other students can be one of the most beneficial consequences of schooling. These activities  help students develop  social and leadership skills, in addition to igniting interest to explore their interests and passions outside of the classroom.

All students face life challenges as part of the schooling process. Teachers, counselors, parents, and other educational stakeholders are vitally important in guiding students to successful educational outcomes as the student engages in the learning process. Unfortunately, many of the following social challenges, require ongoing learning, on the part of all educational stakeholders, to ensure that the student succeeds in their educational journey.

Key Student and Parent Issues

Bullying and harassment (Cyberbullying)
Bullying and harassment can create a negative learning environment for students and can lead to physical and emotional harm. Schools have policies in place to address bullying and harassment. Cyberbullying is an issue that affects all students. Social media platforms are a fertile landscape for the germination of cyberbullying. A student’s safety is paramount in the educational process.

Student discipline
Schools have disciplinary policies in place to address student behavior. Parents, however, may have concerns about fairness and consistency in disciplinary actions.

Special education
Students with exceptionalities have legal rights to receive appropriate educational services and accommodations. Parents may have concerns about the quality and availability of special education services for their child.

Standardized testing
Parents may have concerns about state requirements that mandate students to take standardized tests to measure academic achievement. The impact of testing on student’s ability to succeed in their educational endeavors and the fairness of testing policies are at the forefront of parent/student concerns.

School safety
In light of recent school shootings and other safety concerns, parents may have concerns about the safety of their child while at school. Gangs are an ever-growing issue in many public school settings throughout the United States.

Education funding
A chief issue involving parents, is how parents control tax payer funds for their child’s education. All educational stakeholders can work together to find solutions to these key concerns of parents and students.

Vocabulary

Student

School

College

University

Learning

Education

Academic

Tradition

Mentoring

Educational stakeholders

Bullying

Harassment

Cyberbullying

Disciplinary policies

Special education

Exceptionalities

Accommodations

Standardized testing

School safety

School shootings

Gangs

Education funding

Taxpayer funds