Adolescence offers an opportunity for increased learning, but it also is a period of heightened stress due to the many biological and social changes students face. These various stressors can both directly and indirectly disrupt learning processes in still-developing adolescent brains. This Alliance for Excellent Education report underscores the…

The purpose of this study was to understand how schools address two specific criteria of the Schools to Watch® (STW) program: Social equity and developmental responsiveness. Descriptions of replicable practices, program/school characteristics, and initiatives created by each of the STW sites in Pennsylvania were analyzed. The data also includes…

A growing body of research considers the role of school settings in supporting adolescents' social-emotional and behavioral development through instructional, social, and organizational practices (Eccles & Roeser, 2009). Recent lines of inquiry have begun to investigate individual aspects of the school setting and their influence in promoting…

Understanding the developmental responsiveness of secondary school environments may be an important factor in supporting students as they make the transition from one school to the next. Students' needs may or may not be met depending on the nature of the fit between their basic and developmental needs and secondary school structures at the middle…

This paper investigates the growth of early adolescent self-esteem and self-concept as students progress through the middle level years (sixth through eighth grade). Based on mixed method longitudinal research conducted from 2004 to 2007, the study's findings suggest that this sample of 104 urban students' self-esteem changed most significantly…

The role of the counselor in analyzing institutional features and curriculum plans of middle schools so that they become self-enhancing, safe, sane environments for adolescents is discussed. (BL)

Discusses the benefits of school uniforms in fulfilling the educational objectives of middle school reform. Considers the role of uniforms in establishing student affiliation with the school and in adolescent development. Describes the development of a uniform program and notes issues of cost and legality. (JPB)

The dramatic ups and downs so often witnessed in adolescents are the result of changes in their brain activity. It is vital that the emotional and psychological needs that arise from such intense brain development are acknowledged and addressed so that middle school becomes a safe environment for the budding adults.

The middle school originated out of an understanding for the need of a learning environment geared specifically to the needs of the early adolescent. The transition from concrete to formal operational thought and the affective and psychomotor developmental stages demonstrate the uniqueness of the early adolescent experience. (JN)

Describes educational and philosophical foundations of the Carolina Friends Middle School, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, which blends a conception of adolescent development with Quaker beliefs to create a community that values contributions of young people and the ideals of cooperation, responsibility, and communication. Considers the school as a…

Examines the history of middle level education. Offers suggestions to promote responsive middle level education: (1) building a knowledge base about early adolescent development; (2) assuring that organizational structures, programs, and practices function appropriately; (3) advocating the needs of early adolescents; and (4) involving middle level…

A sample of 15,686 students in grades 6 through 10 in public and private schools completed a self-report survey in 1998 of weapon carrying, weapon carrying in school, physical fighting, and being injured in a physical fight. Involvement ranged from 13 percent to 23 percent of boys and 4 percent to 11 percent of girls. Concludes bullying is a…

Notes that Montessori envisioned that the ideal environment for adolescents was "Erdkinder," or "children of the land." She believed that nature could provide a calming force for adolescents, and working the land with peers could prepare adolescents for real life. Describes the development of the Blackwood Land Laboratory,…

Following several years of negative trends in achievement and attendance in the middle grades, the Cleveland Municipal School District began phasing out middle schools by restructuring 21 of its 80 K-5 elementary schools into K-8 schools. This study examined Cleveland's restructuring initiative in light of 2 theories on early adolescent…

This manual is for experienced group leaders who will be training parents, educators, or policymakers to use the Middle Grades Assessment Program to evaluate how schools are responding to the developmental needs of adolescents. This manual is to be used in conjunction with the user's manual and a slide-tape presentation. The user's manual provides…