The National Forum - To Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform success for All middle school Program Turning Points and direction on howto teach (in some cases, pointing out misconceptions students are likely to http://www.mgforum.org/Improvingschools/CSR/tdmsm_design.htm
Extractions: MIDDLE SCHOOL MODEL Background Research Findings www.csos.jhu.edu/tdms Model Design Key Features The Model promotes academic excellence, developmental responsiveness, and social equity by helping schools engage students with rigorous curriculum and instruction, provide teachers with the support they need to develop deep content knowledge, and develop safe, nuturing, and challenging learning environments. Key elements of the design include: Research-Based Instructional Programs in Each Major Subject Area
Gifted Learners And The Middle School: Problem Or Promise? larger school settings, (2) teach a solid academic core, (3) ensure success for And both believe that all middle school students should take part in http://ericec.org/digests/e535.html
Extractions: August 1995 Historically, tension has existed between gifted education and middle school education (Tomlinson, 1992), leaving some advocates of each educational practice suspicious of the other, and leaving middle school students who are advanced in one or more dimensions of learning in a sort of educational no-man's-land. While some legitimate areas of disagreement are likely to persist, there are enough areas of shared belief to bridge the practice between gifted education and middle school education. This digest provides an overview of (1) some areas of agreement between the fields, (2) some areas of tension, and (3) some promising directions that could engage educators in mutual planning of appropriate services for all middle school students, including those we sometimes call "gifted." Shared Beliefs of Gifted Education and Middle School Education There are at least three areas of common concern shared by gifted education and middle school education.
Shooting For The Sun: The Message Of Middle School Reform His suggestions range from developing a new kind of middle school principal to to teach effectively and tracking the success of students as they learn. http://www.emcf.org/programs/student/shootingforthesun.htm
Extractions: About the Foundation Youth Development Fund Grantmaking at the Foundation President's Corner ... Search Shooting for the Sun: The Message of Middle School Reform Collection of Words by Hayes Mizell Enlightens and Challenges School Educators Shooting for the Sun: The Message of Middle School Reform, a collection of speeches and essays on improving student academic performance in the middle grades, is now available from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation. The featured works, all written by Hayes Mizell, director of the Foundation's Student Achievement Program , discusses the challenges that teachers and principals face in their work to improve student achievement in grades six, seven and eight. Mizell also offers suggestions on how schools can more effectively educate our nation's youth. Many people, including Hayes's co-workers, colleagues and admirers, encouraged us to bring together in a single volume some of his most thoughtful and inspirational speeches about how we call can do better for our kids. We hope Hayes's words will inspire, educate and challenge future leaders in school reform and education long into the future. - Michael Bailin, president, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation
Middle School Prepares Students For Success - The Hilltop - Campus middle school Prepares students for success, , The Hilltop, a newspaper of Howard The real vision is to revamp the way we teach our children, http://www.thehilltoponline.com/news/2005/03/29/Campus/Middle.School.Prepares.St
Extractions: Although the idea has been talked about for almost 10 years, the technical groundwork began for the middle school about a year and a half ago. According to Maqubela, the university chose to include a school in its Strategic Framework for Action's Planned Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Center because administrators saw a need.
Union City, NJ: A District Achieves Success They began to use stories, not textbooks, to teach literacy; and reading middle school students connected math, science, and technology to the real http://ali.apple.com/ali_sites/ali/exhibits/1000599/Leadership.html
Extractions: Carrigg and Highton solicited faculty support. Their 14-member 1989 reform committee had a large majority of teachers from traditional classrooms and from other programs, such as bilingual/ESL and special education, that had never been represented. The group included only three district administrators.
Extractions: Lynn, Massachusetts Key Characteristics Students work in clusters to allow more individualized instruction and flexible scheduling Daily common planning time and team teaching enables teachers to design complementary and collaborative curricula Extensive staff development and monthly support groups bolster teacher innovation Number of Students: Grades Served: Racial/Ethnic Breakdown: 10% Asian Eligible for Free/Reduced-Price Lunch: Major Sources of Outside Funding: Chapter 1, Chapter 636 (desegregation funding), Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, Carnegie Foundation Mr. Peters, a history teacher at Thurgood Marshall Middle School, used to spend more time keeping order in the classroom than teaching. Rather than sending students in droves to the principal's office, he often simply called in sicktoo frustrated and worn out to deal with the stress. Today, Mr. Peters team teaches with five colleagues, scheduling his days as the team sees fit and teaching interdisciplinary units that integrate English and social studies. He hasn't missed a day of school in three years. In 1987, Thurgood Marshall began a restructuring effort that improved student performance and behavior as well as teacher morale. Instead of attendance problems and low success rates, the school today is characterized by innovative groupings that function as schools-within-schools, flexible scheduling, cross-disciplinary classes, extensive staff development, and rising student test scores.
Teaching Perl To Middle School Students If I were giving middleschool students a six-hour Perl class, I would teach regular In the most successful of the middle school efforts last year, http://use.perl.org/comments.pl?sid=612&op=&threshold=0&commentsort=0&mode=threa
Extractions: Source: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education New York NY. Middle School EducationThe Critical Link in Dropout Prevention. ERIC/CUE Digest No. 56. A student's decision to drop out of high school is often the end result of a long series of negative school experiencesacademic failure, grade retention, or frequent suspensionsthat begin before the ninth grade. Dropout prevention strategies, therefore, must be targeted at the middle school grades, when the stresses of schooling related to a more complex curriculum, a less personal environment, and the growing need for peer acceptance pose grave danger to already disadvantaged students (Massachusetts Advocacy Center, 1988). Even though research demonstrates the importance of middle schools in retaining at-risk students, the organization and curriculum of most do not meet the needs of young adolescents, who are going through a tumultuous period of rapid physical development and emotional turmoil. CREATING SMALLER SCHOOLS WITHIN MIDDLE SCHOOLS Part of the problem in trying to restructure middle-grade education is that intermediate schools come in a variety of different sizes and shapes. As many as 30 different middle-school grade configurations have been identified (Center for Research on Elementary and Middle Schools, CREMS, 1987; 1988), with the two most popular types being the grade 6-8 middle schools, now found in about one-third of all school districts, and the grade 7-9 junior high schools.
Diversity And Opportunities At Zane Middle School The Zane school climate feels vibrant and exciting. students toss around a Nerf Two years ago he made a commitment to teach at the middle school. http://www.eurekacityschools.org/community report/zane.html
Extractions: Quiteria Perreira watches as groups of her eighth grade students try to build the tallest free-standing tower using only 10 pieces of paper and one foot of tape. The students were discovering the open-ended problem solving activity had many solutions. As Perreira walked around the room measuring the height of each tower with a piece of string, her students struggled to keep their towers standing even in the slightest breeze.
Notebook:Middle School Students' Views On Good Teaching Many middle school students enter high school without the academic of preparationthat many middle school teachers have to teach the content and course http://philaedfund.org/notebook/GEAR UP.htm
Extractions: GEAR UP, a $28 million program, promotes college readiness at 21 schools Middle years are key to getting prepared for college by Michelle McKinney How do you convince a seventh grader that if she does not start taking school seriously right now, she will have many career options closed off to her forever? How can a teacher see unlimited academic potential in an eighth grade class with a fifth grade skills level? How do you encourage a parent to start saving now for his sixth graders college education when his immediate concern is making sure his child has a teacher every day? A major educational initiative here known as GEAR UP is grappling with these questions as it works toward its mission of college awareness and The GEAR UP program begins working with students no later than the seventh grade and follows these students through middle school into high school. preparation for all. GEAR UP stands for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs. This national initiative is funded through federal legislation sponsored by Congressman Chaka Fattah. As its full name suggests, the goals of GEAR UP are to ensure that students know what kinds of opportunities exist for post-secondary e
Middle School Teaching Resources - Academic Info An annotated directory of Internet resources on teaching middle school. develop strong reading programs as a way of increasing success for all students, http://www.academicinfo.net/edteachms.html
Broadcasting A Middle School Success Story Broadcasting a middle school success Story. At a Massachusetts middle school The Birchland Park middle school students in the TV technology program have http://www.acteonline.org/members/techniques/apr03_story3.cfm
Extractions: var gMenuControlID=0; var menus_included = 0; var jsPageAuthorMode = 0; var jsSessionPreviewON = 1; var jsDlgLoader = '/members/techniques/loader.cfm'; var jsSiteID = 1; var jsSubSiteID = 59; var kurrentPageID = 7606; document.CS_StaticURL = "http://www.acteonline.org/"; document.CS_DynamicURL = "http://www.acteonline.org/"; After many years of teaching English, Jim O?Hearn began a new program at the middle school where he taught. Now he is the director of the TV studio for the East Longmeadow Public Schools, which means he is now a career and technical educator. It is a transition that has renewed his energy toward teaching and has brought a new and exciting program to his school and to its students.
RR5: MATHEMATICS AND MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS OF MEXICAN DESCENT An analysis of literacy enhancement for middle school Hispanic students through In RR Valencia (Ed.), Chicano school failure and success Research end http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pubs/ncrcdsll/rr5.htm
Extractions: AND SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION Mexican-American children consistently have been found to exhibit a more field dependent cognitive style than their Anglo-American peers (Garcia, 1983). The causes and implications of the field dependent/independent construct are subject to debate (Henderson, 1980), but the consequences for instruction of differences in cognitive style remain an important issue. The more field dependent style of Mexican-American children may reflect what Tharp (1989) calls holistic/visual thought. Because children from cultures that employ holistic/visual patterns of cognition tend to learn in their natural environments, Tharp (1989) suggests greater curricular contextualization as a means of making instruction more compatible with the home culture of these students. Thematic instruction may provide an effective way to contextualize instruction. It incorporates a concrete learning-by-doing orientation and has the potential to facilitate cooperative and interactive learning opportunities in the classroom. Cooperative learning can provide opportunities for hands-on activities that result in products on which students perform mental operations, and in situations that engage students in the use of concepts and materials (Tharp, 1989). These features have been identified as characteristics of classrooms that have proved effective for Hispanic students with limited proficiency in English (Garcia, 1991).
Home Page Taylor Road middle school is a team of educators, parents and community members for success in a safe and positive environment, our students will be http://www.trms.ga.net/
Extractions: There will no longer be a late activities bus beginning the week of September 26th. Pictures courtesy of the TRMS Yearbook Staff: Deanna Shipley, photographer ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR THE TRMS COMMUNITY: Click Here for Important Information for 8th Grade Band Students or anyone interested in participating in the CHS Cougar Marching Band next year! The Fulton County Board of Education has issued a position statement concerning the Sales Tax v. Property Tax issue. Click here to view the statement. Offering Opportunity Diversi ty , and Community within a Middle School Setting Taylor Road Middle School is a team of educators, parents and community members committed to young adolescents. By providing knowledge and skills that promote greater academic achievement, personal growth, global awareness and opportunities for success in a safe and positive environment, our students will be prepared for the future. A strong academic program which highlights social diversity will reaffirm cultural differences and the common values that hold our society together. As we strive to develop a strong school community, our students will become responsible young citizens who can adapt to an ever-changing world. The school is a partnership of educators, parents, students and community members.
In The Middle | Science | Northwest Education specific content knowledge and teaching strategies needed to be successful in the At the same time, they love working with middle school students. http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/10-03/middle/
Extractions: A publication of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory Story and photos by Bracken Reed East Helena and Great Falls TIMSS , was particularly critical, claiming that "the middle school is the crux of the whole problem and really the point where we begin to lose it." In a comment sure to raise the hackles of most middle school teachers, Schmidt called the middle grades "an intellectual wasteland" when it comes to challenging math and science curriculum. The results of the most recent TIMSS (now called the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study), conducted in 2003, showed some improvement in eighth-grade science scores, but U.S. students continue to trail behind their peers in most other industrial countries. Despite encouraging signs, middle schools still find themselves the focus of intense scrutiny and criticism. Researchers, educators, and parents agree that the middle school years are a crucial time in a student's life and can often determine future academic performance. Research has shown that most students who lose interest in math and science do so at the middle school level, which is typically the first time they are exposed to higher level thinking skills and abstract concepts.
Faculty/Classrooms - Middle School middle school. Our success shows in that our students get into the high schoolsof their Back in Seattle, Karen began teaching middle school math. http://concordia.seattle.wa.us/midschool.html
Extractions: Middle School "Our success shows in that our students get into the high schools of their choice" During the middle school years, students remain challenged with an expanded and demanding curriculum, including advanced placement math, creative arts, yearbook, student council, cross-curricular projects, and interscholastic sports. Our team of middle school teachers invests not only in our students academic success, but also in their ability to think and make decisions for themselvescritical steps in the transition to high school. Fifth and Sixth Grade Seventh and Eighth Grade Advanced Math ... Band Fifth and Sixth Grade - Shara Knapp Top Shara attended the University of Washington earning a Bachelor's degree in English Literature. She then attended Seattle Pacific University earning her teaching certification. She began teaching at Concordia in 2002. Shara grew up attending a Lutheran elementary school and knows the importance of a Christian education. She is thrilled to be able to share the love of God with her students. When not teaching, Shara enjoys camping, hiking, and spending time with her husband Jason and their two cats. Fifth Grade Curriculum
Extractions: Teaching Today publishes innovative teaching tips on a weekly basis. Written with the busy teacher in mind, each tip is concise, practical and easy to implement in the classroom right away. Topics covered in Teaching Today are classroom management, career development, high stakes testing, instruction and planning, parental involvement, reading in the content areas, using technology in the classroom, and portfolio development. Teaching Today also offers free weekly downloads that correspond to the tips. Our free downloads make implementing the teaching tips even easier. Teaching Today provides educational resources for teachers looking for everyday solutions to the challenges of the classroom. Preparing Middle School Students for High Stakes Tests Public school districts throughout the nation have steadily increased their reliance on standardized testing as a means to measure student achievement. Standardized tests are yardsticks used to measure student abilities, knowledge, and achievement. These assessments meet strict statistical guidelines to guarantee they are valid and reliable measures of proficiency. Standardized tests allow educators to gauge students' performance against that of their peers. The information they provide is then used for a variety of purposes. Students who score below a norm-referenced proficiency level may be placed in remedial courses. Conversely, high-scoring students may be eligible for advanced placement classes.
Lee Ann Rodgers - 2004 Middle School Outstanding Teacher As a teacher of middle school students I have always taught under the team Another major component to teaching success is a studentcentered classroom. http://coekate.murraystate.edu/ota/2004/rodgers/default.htm
Extractions: You are here: MSU COE Outstanding Teacher Awards Lee Ann Rodgers Outstanding Middle School Teacher As a young child, Lee Ann Rodgers was introduced to the field of education when she accompanied her mother to education classes on the Murray State University campus. After graduating from Graves County High School in 1989, Mrs. Rodgers returned to Murray State University. She earned a BA in secondary education with a major in English and a As a teacher at Graves County Middle School, Mrs. Rodgers has demonstrated love and commitment to her students, parents, and colleagues. She has served as a SBDM council member, curriculum instruction committee member, student service committee chairman, public relations committee member, cheerleading sponsor, district leadership team representative, intramural sports director and teacher for 120+ portfolios for over half of her teaching career. Mrs. Rodgers states that her greatest accomplishment is her family. She has been married for ten years to a man who has been more than patient with her never-ending piles of papers to grade. Mrs. Rodgers thanks God for her three beautiful little girls who continue to amaze and enhance her life. Monograph Through the utilization of the above-mentioned team concept I am able to connect with the students on a higher level than I ever thought possible. Middle school students are reaching a time in their lives when socialization becomes a priority. Fosterin g t his developmental need through the family or team concept enables students to feel secure developmentally, thus enablin g t hem to excel academically. Students who begin to work through this team concept are willing and able to function as productive team members and exceed all expectations.
Middle And High School Reading Intervention Conference Notes All teachers should read out loud to their students and teach the reading Those who can not read well by middle school have two key reading problems http://www.beavton.k12.or.us/ci/hs_ms_reading_conf.html
Selected Publications, SFA the good ideas of the middle school movement into dayto-day teaching. Like many other middle school reform models, students in success for All http://www.successforall.net/_images/pdfs/adding_content.htm
Extractions: Sixteen years ago, the Carnegie Corporation (1989) issued a report that profoundly affected the education of young adolescents. Turning Points critiqued the rigid traditional structure of middle schools and advocated reforms intended to make middle grades education more personalized, supportive, and active: interdisciplinary teams, cooperative learning, involvement with families and community, mentoring, and active teaching. Today, the middle school movement is itself at a turning point. The Turning Points reforms, where they have been implemented, have created more humane, child-focused environments that are more in tune with the developmental needs of young adolescents. Yet the achievement of children in the middle grades, especially in high-poverty communities, has continued to languish.
