Visions and Practices in Middle School Education Whittney Smith, Ed.D.

Getting to know you… and them!

“Learning How to Kiss a Frog” Long legs, Greasy, Awkward, and… Never seemingly knowing where they are going They will eventually move out of this stage as long as someone is willing to “kiss them!”

Who are we talking about? 10 – 15 year olds – Period of the Most Rapid & Profound Change! – Patterns of thinking – need for concrete, experiential learning – Movement toward reproductive maturity - physical, emotional, and social concerns – Body Image Concern – crucial period for developing healthy personal habits – Desire for Peer acceptance – allegiance shifts from adults to peers

What makes a middle school (different)? “… Intellectual growth means much more than increasing competence in the academic content of the curriculum. We must endeavor to stimulate in the child a love for learning, an attitude of inquiry, a passion of truth and beauty, a questioning mind. The learning of right answers is not enough… beyond answers alone, we must help children ask the right questions, and discover their answers through creative thinking, reasoning, judging, and understanding.” - Dr. William Alexander (1963)

This We Believe: Keys to Educating Young Adolescents Culture and Community Characteristics Leadership and Organization Characteristics Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Characteristics Importance of Middle Level Education Young Adolescents Major Goals of Middle Level Education Essential Attributes and Characteristics

Structures Philosophy & Management Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment Technology Communication & Community Course Objectives

Structures Teaming Advisory Looping Schedule Structures

“Chalk Talk” What do you know about…? – Teaming – Advisory – Looping – Scheduling Structures tocols/chalk_talk_0.pdf tocols/chalk_talk_0.pdf

Teaming Interdisciplinary teaming (Teacher Teams) Common planning time for teachers Flexible scheduling (Student Teams) More teacher support and collaboration in this model Commitment to success for all students and each other Consistency – Common Expectations!

Advisory An advisory program is an arrangement whereby one adult and a small group of students have an opportunity to interact on a scheduled basis: – Promote student-teacher relationships – Address general self-esteem and competence beliefs – Provide social exchange and peer recognition in a safe environment – Link parents and school – Mediate between academic and social concerns Activities can focus on building a group identity and name, creating a theme and displaying it on a bulletin board, creating a T-shirt to be worn on spirit days, completing a community service project, or friendly competition via an intramural program to build a sense of team identity ; activities to foster “Growth Mindset,” etc. National Middle School Association

Looping Looping can be defined as a teacher remaining with a group of students over multiple years. ProsCons Relationships with students Relationships with parents and familiesStudents adapt less to change – “comfortableness” Understanding student needs / personalization Teachers can get too comfortable - complacency Promotes teacher innovation / Increased student risk taking Less exposure to different teaching / learning methods Classroom managementTeachers are less skilled and comfortable at every level

Schedule Structures

Sample 8 th Grade Schedule