An 8-month practicum was developed to eliminate the communication gap experienced by parents moving from the multi-communicative atmosphere of the elementary school to the relatively incidental reporting environment of the junior high school. The practicum sought to increase home-school communication through parental awareness and involvement. An…

This presentation reports on the third phase of research associated with the Teacher as Decision Maker Program (TADMP), a graduate-level program for middle/secondary school certification at Indiana University. Seven teacher perspectives have emerged from the study of 86 individuals from the fields of science, English, foreign language, math, and…

Teaching at the middle level is different from any other teaching and so requires special preparation. Teachers in middle schools need special training to work with and be responsive to young adolescents need to interact with their peers and to use the peer group rather than the teacher for direction and guidance. The attempt to develop programs…

This paper compares the responses of rural educators from northeastern Kentucky to those of a national sample of respondents completing Phi Delta Kappa's survey, "How Teenagers Respond." This survey aimed to determine what common values adults believe adolescents possess. Thirty-five administrators and teachers from middle schools and…

An observational instrument was developed to facilitate the peer coaching process by special education consulting teachers with regular class teacher colleagues. Use of the instrument was piloted by a special education consulting teacher with three middle school teachers whose classes included special education and at-risk students. The instrument…

This report presents an evaluation of the Multicultural Education Demonstration Program in Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), an effort to address racial and ethnic diversity in a middle school. The report covers the implementation of the program since its inception in May 1989 through the beginning of the 1991-92 school year. It describes the program's…

This practicum was implemented to assist teachers who were investigating the possibility of participation in school-based management shared decision-making initiatives at a local school level. The particular focus was to assist the teachers to make decisions based on knowledge and to supply information about the appropriate manipulation of time…

The high percentage of students not participating in or completing a science research project has been a recurring problem for science teachers. In this project, three variables influencing the problem are identified: (1) students' failure to engage in an active search for science research topics; (2) inadequate resource materials at the middle…

A three-year study was conducted to evaluate the implementation of the Transitional School Model in the Des Moines, Iowa, Independent Community School District. The model was designed to provide early adolescents in grades 6-8 with a more comprehensive bridge between elementary school and high school by emphasizing students' physical, emotional,…

The American Library Association's Carroll Preston Baber Research Award supported this project on the use, impact and feasibility of a computer assisted writing facility located in the library of Stetson Middle School in Philadelphia, an inner city school with a population of minority, "at risk" students. The writing facility consisted…

In a study to evaluate an approach for improving the critical thinking skills of middle school science students, 60 students were given the assignment of completing three guided laboratory activities and writing a report for each. In writing their reports, students were expected to identify the manipulated variable, identify the responding…

This report describes a program for improving moral character to increase academic achievement. Targeted population consisted of middle school students in a growing middle class community in a northern suburb of Chicago, Illinois. The problem, an absence of proper moral character, was documented through data collected from discipline referrals to…

In attempting to identify causes of the high rates of attrition of beginning teachers and possible solutions to their exodus, this study identified what beginning high school and middle school teachers in the Baltimore County Public School system found were their most urgent concerns and most valuable types of assistance. A questionnaire was sent…

In the Orange County (Florida) Public Schools, an evaluation was conducted of career education provided in elementary schools and secondary schools. A kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) Career Education District Articulation Plan provides objectives for every grade level. Ideally, career education is infused into the regular and special…

Eight papers are presented to assist career resource teachers who are working with handicapped students to prepare them for transition from school to work. "In Their Own Words: Teachers Share Their Experiences in Working with Special Education Students" (Lewis Allen) describes the use of cooperative learning in English, electronics, and interior…