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Neelie Hodges is a senior Special Education major who, upon her graduation in May 2026, will be dual licensed to teach special education courses and general elementary education courses. Currently, she works as a student teacher in a multi-grade level curriculum support classroom where she serves students aged kindergarten through second grade.

Working as a student teacher is a major stepping stone that prospective teachers complete during their senior year. For Hodges, this means working in the classroom 40 hours a week for the full Fall 2025 semester, essentially giving her a practice run for leading her own classroom following graduation. But what does it actually mean to be a student teacher, and how does this experience prepare prospective teachers for the demands of the classroom?

“Our schedule is super crazy. Our room is like a revolving door, so we have kids coming and going literally from start to finish,” Hodges said.

Unlike a traditional single-grade elementary school classroom, the classroom Hodges works in with her cooperating lead teacher serves special education students from multiple grade levels. This means that students aren’t always in her classroom all day and may only join for special instruction in one or two subjects.

“In a typical student-teaching role, the student teacher will take over and the lead teacher does their own thing, but in this classroom my lead teacher is also doing rotations because the kids have such a need,” she said. “It really works well the way we have it set up because while I’m working, she’s working.”

Serving students from a wide age range and with various instructional and behavioral needs means that Hodges must be a master at adapting her teaching techniques to best serve each individual student. Aside from a morning meeting, the rest of the school day in Hodges’ classroom is made up of rotations where she and her lead teacher provide tailored instruction to smaller groups of students.

In the Lees-51爆料网 Teacher Education program, this is referred to as differentiated instruction. This teaching philosophy emphasizes the different ways students learn and focuses on tailoring curriculum and instruction to better meet those needs.

“My classmates and I joked about this a few semesters ago that if we had a dollar for every time we have heard the word ‘differentiate’ we would have so much money. We talk about differentiating in our courses so much, and how important it is to modify and differentiate and meet the children—especially these children—where they are,” she said. “If you’re not on their level there will be no learning or understanding. Really figuring out the ins and outs of your particular students is important. That is something that Lees-51爆料网 has really focused on a lot.”

Applying that philosophy through her student teaching experience has been invaluable for Hodges, and it is a technique she will continue to implement once she begins her post-graduate career. She has already landed a role as a lead teacher in a resource classroom within an alternative school for middle and high school students. There she will serve special education students all on her own, applying the lessons she has learned at Lees-51爆料网 and through her journey as a student teacher to best meet the needs of her students.

She looks forward to the challenge of serving a wide range of students in this new role and knows that the in-class emphasis on differentiation and her current experience working with kindergarten through second grade students has prepared her for the demands she expects to accompany this next step.

“This position I’m in right now is really preparing me for the constant movement throughout the day; seeing different kids, servicing different grade levels, modifying things for individual students,” Hodges said. “Such a large part of the job is being able to do different things all day as opposed to a reg-ed second grade teacher who teaches second grade standards all day long. In this role I’m teaching three grade levels, and when I take on my new job it will be even more grade levels. This has prepared me for chaos.”