Describes a difficult sixth grade girl who spent her elementary school years fighting to feel happy. The article focuses on a teacher's efforts to raise the child's self-esteem by examining her home life then taking appropriate steps to encourage success (e.g., tutoring younger students). (SM)

Investigation of the roles of pubertal timing and pubertal status on school achievement for 115 boys and 137 girls followed through grades 6, 7, and 8 indicates that late-maturing boys have the lowest school achievement, whereas late-maturing girls have the highest. Followups at grade 12 indicate few long-term effects. (SLD)

Investigates the relationship between social studies classroom environment and student motivation. Correlates several environmental variables with three motivational constructs (academic motivation, academic self-concept, and social self-concept) among 157 sixth grade, predominantly Hispanic students. Finds student satisfaction significantly…

Uses the Triple Quandary framework as a model for describing the cultural orientations of 50 inner-city African-American sixth graders. Three cultural orientations (Anglocultural, marginalized minority, and Afrocultural) and Afrocultural expressions of spirituality, communalism, and affect were operationalized. The apparent negative impact of an…

Self-perceptions of teacher feedback, social comparison of reading competence, reading satisfaction, and general self-worth were assessed among third and sixth graders (N=247) with learning disabilities and normal achievement. Perceived teacher feedback was the best predictor of reading satisfaction and was less favorable among sixth than third…

Examines the effects of finger placement markers (FPMs) and harmonic accompaniment (context) on the left-hand technique, intonation performance skills, and overall musical performance skills of sixth-grade beginning string students. Considers how a tactile/visual reference and an aural reference can influence the development of string-intonation…

Two experiments examined the use of a number-line metaphor presented with interactive multimedia to help sixth graders with varying levels of mathematics achievement or spatial ability build connections between addition and subtraction of signed numbers and existing conceptual knowledge. Results indicated that use of multiple representations…

The contribution of nonfamily adults to young people's well-being was explored using both a cross-sectional national sample of 614 12- to 17-year-olds and a longitudinal sample of 370 students followed from 6th-8th grades through 10th-12th grades. Both variable- and person-centered analyses were employed. Young people's involvement in…

This article examines family, friend, and media influences on competent and problem behaviors in a sample of 1,174 urban minority youth followed over 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. Students completed annual surveys at their schools. Each of the contextual factors investigated was significantly associated with concurrent aggression and delinquency as…

When Benjamin Banneker Charter Public School in Boston realized that their students' 2002-2003 math scores on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System fell below the target set by Massachusetts for adequate yearly progress, they saw not one problem (poor math achievement), but two. Because it was the fifth year the school had not hit AYP…

The current study investigated how ethnicity and gender affect changes in the self-esteem of early adolescents during the middle school years. Self-report data were collected from more than 4,000 early adolescents from three ethnic groups: European American, African American, and Hispanic and analyzed using a consecutive three-year cross-sectional…

Objective: This study examines peer and parenting characteristics of 149 boys and girls with and without subclinical attention problems. Method: Multivariate analyses showed that children with attention problems had higher levels of negative peer nominations and conflict and betrayal in friendships, and their parents tended to use higher levels of…

In an era dominated by issues of school finance adequacy, it seems particularly important to provide evidence that, despite a number of claims to the contrary, educational resources are indeed positively related to improved student achievement. One of the hypotheses of this article is that expenditures per pupil must be disaggregated into more…

This study used conflict resolution role play vignettes and self-report surveys of 450 New York City 6th graders to examine associations between adolescents' conflict resolution efficacy and social skills. Vignettes covered 3 social contexts, conflict with a peer (disagreement over activities), with a parent (raise in allowance), and with a…

This study contributes to the field by identifying a broad range of traditional and newer middle grade policies and practices, and determining in California which of these differentiate higher- from lower-performing schools serving similar student populations, with performance measured by the state's standards-based tests. Based on a sample of 303…