A basic assumption in teacher education is that teacher education programs are the primary influence in the thinking of new English teachers. A study evaluated that assumption. The researchers worked with four first-year high school or middle school English teachers to identify decision points in their teaching and to name the influences that…

Surveyed middle school parents, teachers, and principals from small and large schools in South Dakota to determine consistency/discrepancy of discipline concerns and whether these concerns differed due to school size. Revealed great discrepancies between parent attitudes and those of teachers or principals concerning use of drugs, alcohol, and…

A teacher notes the good and bad effects of the "back to basics" movement. (RL)

The data presented on the first three years of the implementation of a middle school provide evidence that the middle school concept does improve the learning climate for adolescents and provides a more positive climate for staff and community as well. (For availability, see EA 507 405.) (Author/IRT)

This article reports results of a survey of general educators, special educators, and classmates involved in the integration of middle school students with severe disabilities into eight general education classes in two communities. Integration was perceived positively by all of the educators and by most of the students. (DB)

Finds that rural middle-secondary classroom teachers expect a reading program that is highly compact and content focused and which will replace remediation. Suggests that trained content/reading specialists are needed to promote critical thinking and workplace literacy skills. Offers recommendations for establishing a pragmatic reading agenda for…

Investigates the relationship between teaming and empowerment by comparing the perceived empowerment of middle-school teachers working in departmentalized organizations to those of teachers working on interdisciplinary teams. Interdisciplinary team members felt significantly more empowered in all six factors (decision-making, professional growth,…

Describes the experiences of a teacher using a mathematics curriculum called Six Through Eight Mathematics (STEM). Discusses how experiencing this curriculum helped shape views of mathematics and teacher role. (ASK)

Describes a program wherein two middle school classes representing widely different cultural backgrounds discussed online the subject of race and diversity. Finds that because of the dialogue (1) students were willing to meet each other and benefit from the meetings; and (2) teachers learned the value of examining the effects that their own…

Discusses the events leading up to the development of the new arts education program for the Sarasota Country School District in Florida. Addresses the work of the Community/Schools Partnership for the Arts, its role in developing the arts program, and the interactions between the community and the school district. (CMK)

Investigates how teachers and students assess curriculum implementation in social studies courses at Turkish middle schools. Results indicate that the curriculum guidelines assist teachers in selection of the topics and their sequence in all social studies courses without much room for flexibility, offering little help to teachers beyond the…

Examines who preservice teachers perceived they could and could not be in the middle school classroom as well as who their students could and could not be. Documents how these stories naturalize a way of being in the middle school classroom. Suggests that such narratives covertly authorize particular ways of seeing students. (RS)

Discusses what it means to struggle as a reader, lacking competence with reading strategies and lacking confidence in oneself to make meaning with texts. Argues that balance can be found in adolescent reading programs by seeking equilibrium between the visible and invisible aspects of instruction in the development and use of reading strategies.…

Investigates the use of faculty book clubs as a way to introduce middle school teachers to acclaimed adolescent literature in hopes that they might incorporate the literature read into their language arts and social studies classes. Finds that such clubs are an excellent way to provide staff development in the area of adolescent literature for…

Interviewed 10 middle-school physical educators (PE) with expertise in at least one PE subject area. Each teacher completed four interviews on familiarity with content area and with experience teaching the subject. Results highlighted significant differences between teachers teaching subjects in which they had expertise, and teachers teaching…