Researchers have found that middle school students undergo developmental changes that require unique educational structures and support. As a result, experts have suggested a number of specific strategies for organizing middle schools in order to best meet students' needs. This Information Capsule summarizes middle school redesign initiatives that…

A method for middle school teachers. (SP)

Two teacher researchers examined the nature of mentoring relationships occurring among and between team teachers at one middle school as they planned for and taught a common group of students. There were five types of (simultaneous) mentoring among teachers: collaborative, clerical, professional teacher, interdisciplinary content, and…

This study evaluated a 2-year in-service teacher training project in the Belpre Middle School, Belpre, Ohio. The objectives of the program included a) the change of teachers' roles, in terms of perceptions, procedures, and morale, from those in self-contained classrooms to those in cooperative teaching teams; b) the increase of teachers'…

Discusses the implementation of a modified block schedule with three-teacher teams to deepen student engagement and understanding of the curriculum. Considers benefits of the block for students and teachers, and the starting assumptions and goals of the schedule, along with cautions for change. (JPB)

This curriculum guide describes the instructional program at the Ada H. H. Lewis Middle School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In brief, the goals of the program are to provide the schools' fifth-grade through eighth-grade students with educational opportunities based on an eclectic team-teaching approach. Four separate "houses" accommodate…

A paramount objective of the middle school is to further the self-development of its students in the several academic disciplines, study skills, problem analysis, and problem solving areas. The curricula content is determined by students and the professional staff members working with them. Emphasis is on individual growth with student involvement…

Restructuring efforts, including curriculum integration, require that teachers exercise intellectual skills transcending craft wisdom and recipe exchanges. This article explores the tension between teamed middle-school teachers' technical interest in seeking recipes and their deliberationist interest in engaging in fruitful dialog. Teachers…

Describes the establishment of two middle schools in Alachua County, Florida, and the processes involved thus far, as an abbreviated case study in middle school development. (Author)

Discusses the development of a teaching team structure in one middle school, describing efforts to redefine curriculum, assessment, scheduling, and teaming to foster new roles and relationships for students and teachers. (JPB)

This paper describes and interprets the case of a middle school's first year of using interdisciplinary teacher teams as a key among several restructuring moves. It describes: (1) characteristics of the teaming process--leadership, decision making, professional growth and support of individual teachers, and cooperation, competition, and conflict…

Describes implementation of interdisciplinary middle school environmental science curriculum units and factors associated with successful implementation. Notes that strong principal support; structural components such as the teachers having students in common and a common planning time; a strong, intact team; and time for concentrated curriculum…

The faculty of a middle school has constructed a model of a reading program, using components of other programs at other grade levels. The elements of the model include basal reading, teaching reading in the content areas, and individualized reading. The strengths of these components depend on teachers' understanding of learning theory and…

A focus group of 5 general education schoolteachers from one rural middle school in Hawaii was conducted to investigate their perspectives on the unintended effects of including students with learning disabilities. The general education teachers were asked how the inclusion of students with learning disabilities had impacted (a) their professional…

Teaming incorporates an ever expanding curriculum, without an overlapping of subjects, by a collaboration of teachers and students learning from one discipline to another. Through the teaming approach to teaching, the child gains from the emotional, motivational, and enrichment of interrelationships of different subject teachers. Stimulation for…