The purpose of this study was to compare scores students received on the eighth grade EXPLORE test in math and English to scores received in English 9 and Algebra I on both the End-of-Course (EOC) test and the final average in those courses. These scores were taken from a rural East Tennessee High School and the middle schools that feed into the…

Web-based digital video (DV) applications such as Animoto, Magistro, and Videolicious allow users without technical experience to easily create quality video by matching up appropriate images with text and sound. DV's multimedia capabilities encourage students to become more proficient in new literacies as well as new technologies. This piece…

This case study examined a Romanticism unit within a Year 9 English class in Sydney, Australia. It considered whether popular culture could build connections between students' lives and Romanticism, and whether the process of remixing "high" Romantic poetry with "low" popular culture could foster student engagement. Thematic…

The present study will present Kemp's design in the classroom setting for students with hearing impairments. Based on his model, the researcher will design various instructional methods of how to teach students with hearing aids in the school, focusing on the instruction of English to America K-12 students. The study will also include a list of…

This investigation examined how middle school teachers implemented Word Generation, a cross-content vocabulary intervention and how the program affected student learning of academic vocabulary words. Participants included four content area teachers and their sixth-grade students. Students received vocabulary instruction in their social studies,…

This document describes the model used by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) to measure student growth for institutional accountability in New York State for the 2016/17 school year. In 2016/17, growth models were implemented for institutional accountability in Grades 4-8 ELA and mathematics. All models are based on assessing each…

This document describes the model used by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) to measure student growth for institutional accountability in New York State for the 2015/16 school year. In 2015/16, growth models were implemented for institutional accountability in Grades 4-8 ELA and mathematics. All models are based on assessing each…

Discourses of achievement often overlook the interdependence of classroom contexts, students' identities, and academic performance. This narrative analysis explores how high-achieving students of color construct identities-in-practice in a diverse urban middle school. By documenting explicit moments in which students construct…

This study aimed to analyze the gender sensitivity of English grade 9 material through evaluation of texts and pictorial presentations. In addition, it modified the grade 9 material tasks through localization and contextualization of the investigated gender-insensitive texts and pictures. This assessed as well, the acceptability of the modified…

Originally published as a special issue of the "Middle School Journal," this book presents integrative curriculum as a foundational element of the middle school. By addressing the current gap in literature on curriculum integration in the middle grades, this text explores how learning can be organized around authentic concepts or…

This article arises from an action research investigation that sought to understand the ways in which different approaches to teaching pre-twentieth century literature in Year 9 English lessons might influence students' experiences of texts. It examines the proposition that some students need to have a secure understanding of the text before they…

In this article Deidre Faughey shares an experimental classroom project that she developed with a diverse group of students in three ninth-grade English Language Arts (ELA) classes. Podcasts provide a unique opportunity for students to embrace experimentation and to take risks with their own voices, explore the school building and community, and…

Despite an increasing international trend towards integrating linguistics into the mainstream English curriculum, many teachers struggle to find exciting and relevant ways to cover this material with their students. In this article, we describe how nicknames collected as part of a research study of Australian secondary students can be used as a…

This essay charts the experiences of a group of Year 10 students studying literature together. I challenge the current educational thinking that the literature classroom should consist exclusively of a set of canonised texts handed down from teacher to student. Instead I consider the importance of ensuring students have space to explore themselves…

In this essay, veteran high school teacher Cherish R. Skinker recounts how she connected with hard-to-reach, struggling students in her 9th grade English classes. In a supportive classroom environment, Skinker's students explored the year-long theme of "a hero's journey" through texts like "The Odyssey" and "Romeo and…