MiddleWeb

Return of the Middle School Model

  We recently shared a news article about some Illinois school districts that were abandoning the "fluffy" middle school philosophy and returning to good old junior highs. Now an Ohio district is heading in the opposite direction. Faced with chronic poor performance after years of functioning like junior highs, this fall the Columbus school system is going back to the middle school model. Then there's the new NYC study saying K-8 rules. Maybe it's not about grade configuration at all?

 

Designing a Middle School for the Whole Child

If a school were designed from the ground up with the whole child in mind, what would it look and feel like? This recent article in ASCD's Education Update newsletter tells of a rapidly growing Illinois community that seized the opportunity to create a second middle school that addresses "the unique challenges of grade 6-8 students' entire learning experience." From structural layout to instructional design, Carriel Junior High is doing things differently.

Some Districts Giving Up Middle School Ideals?

A recent story in the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported on some nearby Illinois school districts that are "reverting to the junior-high model, rather than the middle-school model, in an effort to save money." Others, the newspaper says, are adopting hybrid models but abandoning enrichment programs, smaller class sizes and team teaching that were signatures of the middle school concept. The switch will allow districts to eliminate teaching positions in the face of state budget shortfalls. Says one district business manager: "Educationally that's a mistake, but financially this is a requirement. The state has no idea the damage they are doing to these kids."

Solutions for the Antsy Classroom

Not long ago we spotted a news story about an elementary school that replaced classroom chairs with fitness balls and found their youngsters were able to stay put long and concentrate better. Now comes a similar story about a solution for restless middle schoolers -- but this time, instead of bouncy balls, it's stand-up desks. In Idaho, Minnesota and Wisconsin (at least), some schools are replacing the standard classroom desk "with height-adjustable work stations that teachers hope will offer notorious fidgeters some relief for their antsy tendencies." Read this Associated Press story and click on the accompanying photos for a good look at the stand-up desks.

Middle School & Grade Configurations

Here's a perennial debate unlikely to ever be resolved: What's the best grade setup for students in the early adolescent years? K-8, 6-8, 7-8, or some other variation? We mentioned this resource as a "side link" in a post about the K-8 controversy, but it deserves a headline of its own. It's a 2008 policy statement on Grade Configuration by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform that includes a summary of all the major research to date. The Forums' conclusion? "(W)hat is most important for the education of young adolescent learners is what takes place inside each middle-grades school, not grade configuration per se."

Grade Configuration: New Doubts about the K-8 "Solution"

A recent story in the Washington Post, headlined "Doubts Linger on Pre-K-8 Strategy," considers the available evidence supporting the contention of D.C. school chancellor Michelle Rhee that a pre-K-8 grade structure will produce more successful, higher achieving students. "Evidence of pre-K-8's long-term benefits, however, is far from clear-cut," the Post reports, quoting a Johns Hopkins researcher who says, "The benefit isn't as big as it looks when you sit down and eyeball it." Those who view the K-8 structure as a solution to what ails middle schools might consider a new policy statement on grade configuration from the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform. The brief document (PDF) summarizes all of the important research to date and concludes: "What is most important for the education of young adolescent learners is what takes place inside each middle-grades school - not grade configuration, per se."

Looping Has "High Stakes" Payoff

Here's a looping success story from Cutler Ridge Middle School in "high stakes" Florida. The story describes how a sixth grade team convinced their principal to allow them to remain with students through grade eight. "When that group became eighth graders and took the Florida high-stakes FCAT exam, their scores were clearly above the eighth-grade teams that had not looped," says middle grades teacher Linda Emm. "Most impressive was the fact the minority students' scores were on a par with non-minority students for the first time in school history." (Education World)