The Chesapeake (Virginia) Public Schools' Laboratory School for the Academically Gifted provides gifted fifth- and sixth-graders with a one-day-a-week program of enhanced instruction. The school district's evaluation found high satisfaction with the program among students, parents, teachers, and administrators, but better communication between the…

A Sioux Falls (South Dakota) project that supplied middle school teachers with Macintosh computers and training to use them showed gratifying results. Easy access to portable notebook computers made teachers more active computer users, increased teacher interaction and collaboration, enhanced teacher productivity regarding management tasks and…

For a middle school, family involvement in school life begins with the orientation program for incoming students. An effective transition program can help parents and prospective students anticipate a new school's academic and social expectations. This article describes a Vermont middle school's transition program, highlighting planning and…

Summarizes a 5-year study examining the implementation of interdisciplinary teaching teams in middle-level settings and teachers' attitudes toward teaming practices. Although teachers' attitudes fluctuated, the agreement level never fell below 72%. Teachers are attracted to interdisciplinary teaming and seem to retain their positive views as they…

Summarizes a study to determine the importance that 77 east Texas middle school principals accorded middle school concepts and to discover degree of concepts' implementation. Survey respondents considered the majority of 30 middle school characteristics important. There were considerable gaps between perceived importance and actual implementation…

Describes the effects of Camp DETOUR, an adventure experience program for sixth-grade students at a Georgia middle school. Program goals were improvement of student self-esteem as a component of drug abuse prevention and improvement of student behavior. The program was shown to have positive effects on student self-esteem. This result may deter…

Examines how teachers use computerized comment menus on report cards and what teachers and parents think of the process, An analysis of report cards for 475 Wisconsin middle-school students shows teachers used comments most of the time. Only 52% of students received two comments. Most comments were positive. Parents and teachers found the practice…

Analysis of data gathered from surveys, interviews, and student records revealed three major differences between stayers and leavers enrolled in a middle-school thematic choice program in San Antonio, Texas. Stayers were more likely to have been involved in the decision-making process, had more friends in the program, and had higher scholastic…

Evaluate effects of an outdoor "hands-on," cooperative science laboratory on seventh- and eighth-grade students' environmental knowledge levels and science-processing skills. Participating students' scores on the Integrated Processes Skills Test were significantly higher than those of nonprogram students. Results support involving…

Identifies and compares the values emphasized in instruction, according to middle-school students and teachers in five private schools, two public schools of choice, and two public attendance-zone schools in San Antonio, Texas. Public and private schools stressed similar values--the importance of learning and developing a sense of right and wrong.…

A New York school district was forced to consider a grade-level reorganization or possible school closing, primarily resulting from severe economic pressures. Describes the advantages and disadvantages of reorganizing 2 K-5 elementary schools into a K-2 primary school and a 3-5 intermediate school. Cites four basic reasons frequently offered to…

Summarizes results of 1990-91 study of pilot program (SHAPE) using a multiagency approach to provide individualized support services to at-risk middle-school students. Presents detailed case analyses of three selected students representing three target groups. Students having difficulty adjusting to school demands resulting from moderate family…

Examines whether team-taught, departmentalized, and K-8 schools differed in academic achievement at grades six, seven, and eight. Dependent variables were mean building-level achievement scores in reading, mathematics, science, and social studies on the Spring 1995 Missouri Mastery and Achievement Tests. During the transition year, middle schools…

The development of a multicultural center at Prospect Middle School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was a response to the increase of racism and bigotry. Academic performance for both African-American and white students has improved significantly, and overall suspension rates have dropped by nearly 50 percent. (MLF)