Examines the effects of finger placement markers (FPMs) and harmonic accompaniment (context) on the left-hand technique, intonation performance skills, and overall musical performance skills of sixth-grade beginning string students. Considers how a tactile/visual reference and an aural reference can influence the development of string-intonation…

Two experiments examined the use of a number-line metaphor presented with interactive multimedia to help sixth graders with varying levels of mathematics achievement or spatial ability build connections between addition and subtraction of signed numbers and existing conceptual knowledge. Results indicated that use of multiple representations…

Provides strategies for school-level personnel to take an active role in improving how their facility functions in the education process. Includes advice on seeking a role in facilities design, encouraging the district to use facilities management tools, considering the unusual, and championing the cause of better school facilities. (SD)

Provides examples of middle school facilities design considerations for both new and remodeled buildings. Argues that the planning process is critical and offers advice including developing and reviewing the philosophy, selecting planning participants, conducting a Futures Workshop, beginning the process, planning at the microlevel, research, and…

Service learning addresses many developmental needs of early adolescents that may be neglected in academic curricula, a particularly urgent need for inner city youth. This paper describes the urban National Helper's Network, noting ways that service learning empowers both the servers and the served, who are both in need. (SM)

Comparison of a culturally-sensitive activity-based outdoor science curriculum with a traditional textbook and classroom approach found that fourth-grade American Indian students in the activity-based group had significantly higher science achievement scores than those in the control group. There were no significant differences between Indian and…

Describes preservice teacher education reform efforts at California State University San Marcos via program development and curricular design innovation. Beginning faculty worked on creating a middle level teacher education program informed by critiques of teacher education, visions for restructured middle schooling, and institutional realities.…

The choice theory holds that people can control only their own behavior, and that all people need a sense of belonging, freedom, power, and fun. This article argues that teachers must recognize that these needs motivate student behavior, and describes how a middle school turned its discipline and achievement problems around by using choice theory.…

Explores the attrition rate of instrumental music students between the initial grade level of instruction and grade seven. Compares retention rates between those programs that housed grades five and six in the same building and those that housed them in separate buildings. Considers implications of these findings. (MJP)

Briefly describes activities and questions designed to integrate the study of electricity into any of the specific social studies disciplines. Meeting the performance expectations of the National Standards, the activities are connected to archaeology, anthropology, geography, history, economics, political science, law, religion, philosophy,…

Provides a comprehensive overview of methods integrating portfolio assessment into middle and high school social studies. Discusses specific interrelationships between instructional styles and portfolio assessment. Outlines tips for creating a portfolio, suggests relevant topics, and provides evaluative criteria. (MJP)

This study investigated middle school organizational patterns and their impact on teachers' efficacy and perceptions of the working environment. Analysis of survey responses by 81 eighth grade teachers indicated that teachers on interdisciplinary teams with common planning time were significantly more positive than were teachers on…

Demonstrates how reading, and creative thinking can increase literacy and create historical empathy in a sixth-grade class. The centerpiece of the class on ancient civilizations is an adaptation of "Antigone," by Sophocles. Recommends the use of dramatic literature because of its ability to engage and transform students' thinking. (MJP)

One of five articles in the second section, "Deepening Relationships through PDS Brings Change in Practice," this article describes a collaborative research project between a middle school mathematics teacher and a university mathematics professor. (SM)

Describes a study that examined high-income and low-income middle schoolers' perceptions of teachers. Interviews indicated that social class was important in both groups' thinking. Low-income students were very attuned to teachers' attitudes toward them, and school was stressful for them as they were very much aware of their subordinate standing…