Standard 1 lays a strong foundation for the rest of the standards.  First, every teacher must be fully aware of and educated on the different learning styles.  It is important for teachers to know all of the benefits and struggles of each learning style and know how to identify which learning style each student prefers.  Teachers need to know how to teach to each style so that every student is able to learn the material to the best of their ability.  Second, teachers must be aware of the diversity in their classroom.  Every student has a different story that makes them unique, and teachers need to respect each student by understanding where they came from.

    One of the sub-points of the standard states that “teachers expect that all students will achieve to their full potential.”  This point could be a standard in itself.  Teachers should give students reasonable goals and expect that the goals be met.  If teachers aim low, students will achieve low; but if teachers aim high, students will rise to the expected level.  However, teachers must not lose faith in their students and constantly remind their students that each one of them is capable to reaching their goals.

    To apply this standard to my classroom I will use differentiated instruction.  It can sometimes be difficult to get away from just lecturing in a high school math classroom, but it is my job to make sure each student learns the material.  I will plan lessons around all learning styles and make sure that all of my students’ needs are met.  I plan to set chapter goals for my students so they know ahead of time what I expect of them, and what they need to learn from the chapter in order to be successful in my class.