At a time when the public, researchers, and policymakers are losing confidence in public schooling, this presentation of case studies of four schools offers solutions and concrete models of diverse ways in which excellence can be attained in middle-grade schools. Asking what "effectiveness" means for the young adolescent age group (a hitherto unexplored area in research literature), how effective schools come about, and how they achieve acceptance in their communities, Lipsitz identifies and examines successful middle-grade schools, noting that the major problem in schooling is meeting the massive individual differences in the development of early adolescents.

A leading publisher of professional books in the field of middle level education, NMSA provides resources both for understanding and advancing various aspects of the middle scholl concept and for assisting classroom teachers in planning for instruction.

Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.

Declining academic performance, along with a growing apathy of students toward the value of education, demonstrates that students in the United States public education system do not recognize the value of a positive experience in middle schools. A plethora of research and writing has been done on elementary schools and secondary schools, but middle school education, as a whole, has been left behind. For this reason, there is the need for current research on all aspects and topics that may contribute to middle school student success. Promoting Positive Learning Experiences in Middle School Education focuses on the ideal conditions for maximizing student success and engagement in middle school education. The chapters take a deeper look into the modern tools, technologies, methods, and theories driving current research on middle school students, their teachers, their classroom environment, and their learning. Highlighting topics such as curriculum reform, instructional strategies and practices, effective teaching, and technology in the modern classroom, this book is ideally intended for middle school teachers, middle school administrators, and school district administrators, along with practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students interested in middle school education and student success.

After-school programs, scout groups, community service activities, religious youth groups, and other community-based activities have long been thought to play a key role in the lives of adolescents. But what do we know about the role of such programs for today's adolescents? How can we ensure that programs are designed to successfully meet young people's developmental needs and help them become healthy, happy, and productive adults? Community Programs to Promote Youth Development explores these questions, focusing on essential elements of adolescent well-being and healthy development. It offers recommendations for policy, practice, and research to ensure that programs are well designed to meet young people's developmental needs. The book also discusses the features of programs that can contribute to a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. It examines what we know about the current landscape of youth development programs for America's youth, as well as how these programs are meeting their diverse needs. Recognizing the importance of adolescence as a period of transition to adulthood, Community Programs to Promote Youth Development offers authoritative guidance to policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and other key stakeholders on the role of youth development programs to promote the healthy development and well-being of the nation's youth.

Adolescents at School brings together the perspectives of scholars, educators, and researchers to address the many issues that affect adolescents’ emerging identities, especially in relation to students’ experience of and engagement with school. The book offers current and preservice teachers a practical understanding of the concept of identity development, particularly as impacted by such factors as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability/disability, immigration, and social class. This third edition includes new chapters on boys’ emotional lives, risk and resilience in girls, the experiences of undocumented immigrant students, Muslim-American youth, and income inequality; features on “teaching while white”; and an extensively updated chapter on LGBTQ+ students. The book expands on the strengths and insights of the previous editions while also touching on issues highly relevant to contemporary youth such as social media, youth activism, and immigration. A practical and insightful volume, Adolescents at School points to ways to foster the success of every student in our schools and classrooms.

Young teens undergo multiple changes that seem to set them apart from other students. But do middle schools actually meet their special needs? The authors describe some of the challenges and offer ways to tackle them, such as reassessing the organization of grades K-12; specifically assisting the students most in need; finding ways to prevent disciplinary problems; and helping parents understand how they can help their children learn at home.

(Sponsored by the Middle Level Education Research SIG and the National Middle School Association) The Young Adolescent and the Middle School focuses on issues related to the nature of young adolescence and the intersection of young adolescence with middle level schooling. This volume of the Handbook of Research in Middle Level Education marks the sixth installment in the series. The Handbook series, begun in 2001 by Vince Anfara, the series editor, has addressed varying thematic issues important to middle level education research. This volume, The Young Adolescent and the Middle School, focuses on the unique developmental needs of young adolescents and the role of the middle school in attending to these needs. The contributing authors in this volume address one of three developmental areas critical to young adolescents—physical development, intellectual/cognitive development, or social and personal development—and how these developmental characteristics affect the educational environment and the organization of middle schools.