This paper describes a study in which both collaborative action research and collaborative mathematics classroom instruction took place. The mathematics instruction consisted of the implementation of a problem-solving curriculum into seventh-grade mathematics classrooms. One problem-solving strategy per week for 10 weeks was introduced to the 4…

It is suggested that most standardized science tests do not adequately assess the majority of concepts taught as part of the very diversified middle school science curriculum. The 50-item Life Science Test constructed by Portland Public Schools, Maine, herein presented, aims to resolve this inadequacy. The 40-minute multiple choice test…

There are potentially successful students who are failing one or more subjects every year. Many students are spending more than the normal 3 years at the middle school level because of this failure. A program was designed to increase the self-esteem, motivation, and interest of at-risk students, thereby improving their grades. A second aim was to…

In 1982 the Michigan Educational Assessment Program's Test of music learning was administered by local school staffs to fourth, seventh, and tenth graders from 36 randomly selected schools in 33 districts. Group tests were administered to 5700 students, and 500 students took individual tests. Test items were developed from objectives in the…

Students' abstract reasoning abilities can differ from one society to another. Students' profiles play significant roles in these differences. The aim of the study is to determine the relationship between middle school students' cognitive development levels and their profiles (age, gender, and science achievement) using the Science Cognitive…

The purpose of this study was to determine Tapp Middle School's instructional technology staff development needs, determine sustainability and staff development costs, and develop a long-range comprehensive instructional technology staff development action plan. This study also focuses on the student as the customer who deserves access to the best…

This report describes a program for improvement of student social skills to include respect for self and others, conflict resolution, and self-control. The targeted population consisted of first, fifth, and seventh graders located in northwestern Illinois. The problems of deficiencies in social skills were documented. Data were collected from…

The effect of collaborative testing on junior high school students' scores was investigated. Twenty-two students in grades 7, 8, and 9 were given curriculum-based tests in their pre-algebra classes. Some tests were taken individually in the traditional manner, and others were taken collaboratively by students in pairs over a 10-week period.…

To determine the nature of middle school education as it is currently practiced, researchers randomly selected 100 seventh-grade students in 100 schools in 30 states, and assigned an observer to write down each student's behavior and describe the learning environment at specified intervals during the school day of February 17, 1977. Analysis of…

The initial phase of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI) provided all 7th and 8th grade students and their teachers with laptop computers. In the fall of 2003, a survey of all teachers involved with the program was administered by Maine Education Policy Research Institute to determine how and to what extent the technology was being…

This report describes the implementation of portfolio assessment in order for students and parents to become more aware of students' academic growth in writing for first/second grade students and math for seventh grade students. The targeted population consisted of elementary and middle school students in two middle class communities, located in…

A study of seventh and eighth graders in the southwest compared effects on exercise-intrinsic motivation and physical self-worth of taking either the President's Challenge or the Fitnessgram fitness test battery. Results did not support the premise that fitness test batteries would produce different motivational and self-perception outcomes. (SM)

The students targeted were third and fourth grade students with learning-disabilities and seventh-eighth grade science students who exhibited poor test scores, motivation, and behaviors that negatively impacted their learning. The objective of this study was to change the level of student engagement in order to increase their academic achievement…

This thesis investigates factors associated with the self-esteem of school children in the fourth and seventh grades. The 460 students were drawn from 5 schools in a single school district, located in a town of over 120,000 persons. Students were examined through the independent variables of gender, grade level, race, socioeconomic status, and…

The 1990s are being labeled as the era of juvenile crime and violence. This program was developed, implemented, and targeted for adolescent minority males (n=25), in order to: (1) help identify at-risk students; (2) provide guidance; (3) provide strategies for academic success; (4) provide mentors; and (5) reduce the number of suspensions. Faculty…