This "Instructor" Supplement on middle school education, presents articles on new research and materials, adolescent development, reasons for teaching middle school, moving toward a middle school curriculum, peer teaching, multimedia software, murder mysteries, ancient China, geometry, teamwork, descriptive writing, literature, problem solving,…

Describes using the movie "Jurassic Park" as a foundation for a middle school interdisciplinary unit involving science, math, language arts, history, and geography. Suggested books and activities are presented. (PR)

Presents an activity in which students develop science process skills by making inferences as to the contents of a "mystery" box from observations based on their sensory perceptions. Provides instructions for implementing and extending the activity. (MDH)

Describes a course for graduate science education students in the history, philosophy, and nature of science. Topics addressed include the course motivation and evolution; aims, topics, and goals; organization and instructional methodology; a reading list; projects; and grading and evaluation. (PR)

Investigated effects of participation in developmentally appropriate affective education program. Middle school students (n=23), identified as high risk for dropping out and also as learning disabled or emotionally disturbed, were assigned to experimental and control conditions. Participants in affective education group met for 15 weeks.…

Studied the effects of interdisciplinary teaming versus departmentalization on student achievement in middle schools. Found no significant differences for reading, math, science, and social studies achievement. Results suggest that team teaching merits further investigation as a potential strategy for mediating the student achievement loss…

Describes an integrated schoolwide project at a California high school in which students learned real-world technology skills and workplace etiquette by working together to create a multimedia CD-ROM project, in the form of a quilt, that described local history. Student teams, scheduling changes, teacher roles, community judging, and student…

Presents ideas for promoting high-school library media centers using technology, including cable television broadcasts; pathfinders to specific information needs; a World Wide Web home page; lunchtime inservice presentations for teachers; current contents from magazines for staff; senior citizen volunteers with specialized technology skills; and…

Reports a two-phase project aimed at developing critical language awareness through the teaching of Portuguese. During the first phase, 13-year-olds in a Brazilian state school evaluated their Portuguese lessons, and identified features they felt needed altering to develop critical awareness of language and social reality. Changes were proposed…

Study investigated effectiveness of two techniques in second-language vocabulary development: spacing of first-language (FL) and second-language (SL) words and reversal of the conventional FL/SL order in paired associate learning. Subjects were 16 English-speaking grade-seven students of French. Results showed superior performance in both spacing…

The Philadelphia Partnership is a Philadelphia School District (Pennsylvania) program, sponsored by the state higher education system and designed to increase the number of low-income and minority students in comprehensive, neighborhood magnet schools who attend college and graduate. A hundred sophomores are selected annually to participate in the…

Relational education addresses social as well as academic aspects of student development. The core elements of relational education as used in the Community School, a Maine alternative high school, are trust, paying respectful attention, teacher-student relationships, a sense of belonging, student responsibility for behavior and physical plant…

Describes the Telecommunications, Education, Career Enhancement Project (TECH) at Teachers College in New York City that focuses on improving the basic English skills of intermediate ESL students from Haiti. Discusses educational objectives; student projects using video, television, and multimedia; student achievements and attendance records. A…

Provides an overview of the Cities in Schools (CIS) organization and its school-based service delivery model that focuses on reducing problem outcomes for at-risk youth. Findings from a multiyear evaluation that documented the characteristics of youth who participate in CIS programs are presented, and CIS components to support school safety are…

High schools can have a positive effect on Hispanic students' academic success by cultivating an advocacy-oriented school environment that implements effective practices in four areas: dropout prevention, effective instruction, psychoeducational assessment, and understanding and easing the acculturation process. Contains 47 references. (TD)