National Practices and Trends in the Middle Grades

Abstract

analyze the diversity of educational approaches and practices in U.S. public schools for young adolescents and begin to understand the effects of different practices on school programs and student progress. Education in the Middle Grades: National Practices and Trends, recently published by National Middle School Association, summarizes the information collected from principals in public schools that contain grade 7 to provide an overview of middle grades education in the United States in 1988. The following topics are discussed in the monograph: grade span; size (school size, grade enrollment, student staff ratio); grouping and regrouping practices (between class grouping, changing classmates); number of teachers; responsive practices (homeroom activities, advisory groups, guidance counselors, interdisciplinary teams of teachers, transition and articulation practices, remedial instruction opportunities, report card evaluations); curriculum; instructional approaches; other policies and practices including goals for students, teacher certifications, teacher talents, summary of ecommended practices and trends, and overall evaluation of programs. Education in the Middle Grades provides a snapshot of middle grades practices in public schools in the U.S. in 1988. The monograph and several related papers begin to address the question: Are the practices that are being implemented having positive effects on the strength of middle grades programs and on student outcomes?