In the 2011-2012 academic year, Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools transformed eight elementary schools into PK-8 schools. The Office of Program Evaluation (OPE) at the University of South Carolina conducted a multi-year evaluation to understand the PK-8 transition process. OPE research staff collected information from district leaders, principals,…

In 2011-2012, eight schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) adopted a PK-8 structure. The Office of Program Evaluation in the College of Education at the University of South Carolina is collaborating with the CMS Center for Research and Evaluation to better understand the PK-8 transition process as well as academic and behavioral…

This study involved a pilot examination of the impact of the Supporting Early Adolescent Learning and Social Strengths (SEALS) model on the 6th grade academic and social context following the transition to middle school. Two middle schools from a high poverty Appalachian school district were randomly assigned to the intervention and control…

Provides a planning transition model for teachers of elementary and middle school. Describes the five essential components of the model: (1) developing a planning team; (2) generating goals and identifying problems; (3) developing written strategic plans; (4) acquiring the support and commitment of teachers; and (5) evaluating the transition…

The key to successful junior high to middle school transitions is participatory planning that involves all school-community members. This article discusses essential questions, describes the Howard County (Maryland) Public Schools' model approach, and stresses the importance of securing teacher commitment and know-how and evaluating the planning…

This appendix was created to minimize aspects of the data analysis carried out for the quantitative study of Transition Years Initiatives in Ontario (Canada) schools. Technical appendices for the multivariate statistical procedures used in this analysis were needed for chapters 5 through 9 of the main report. The bulk of these appendices are path…

Several schools that eschewed the middle school model and remained K-8 discovered anecdotally that their students showed fewer behavioral problems and higher academic achievement than many students enrolled in middle schools. On the basis of studies that verified these observations, school district leaders in Milwaukee, Baltimore, and Philadelphia…

This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Conference on Education and New Developments (END 2017), organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). Education, in our contemporary world, is a right since we are born. Every experience has a formative effect on the constitution of the…

The recent wave of accountability reform movements has largely overlooked the needs of middle and high school counselors, yet has generated daunting pressure for guidance programs to be standards-based and data-driven. Written from the perspective of a practicing, certified counselor, this guide contains essential information needed to implement…

This article discusses development during the early adolescent years with a focus on recent research on the biological, cognitive, self-identity, and motivational changes that occur during this time period and the implications of this research for middle school counselors. Peer influences on early adolescents also are discussed, with the issue of…