Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success Sam Zigrossi, Dr. Ed Fuller, Scott Van Beck, Dr. Charles Simmons Abstract: A recent finding about high school graduates is incredibly alarming: only one in five ACT-tested 2008 high school graduates are prepared for entry-level college courses in English Composition, College Algebra, social science, and Biology, while one in four are not prepared for college-level coursework in any of the four subject areas (ACT,2008). The ACT “The Forgotten Middle” report suggests that the middle school is a critical defining point for students in the college and career readiness process—one so important that, if students are not on target for college and career readiness at the completion of middle school, the impact may be nearly irreversible.
A recent Texas Business and Education Coalition study that focused on Texas students arrived at very similar findings for Texas students. The study, “Supporting College Readiness: Preparing Middle School Students for High School Success in Texas”, reported similar findings for Texas middle school students. The research conducted by Dr. Ed Fuller, found that the performance of students in 8th grade is strongly associated with a number of individual outcomes for students in high school. Specifically, students not taking the 8th grade Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) or not passing the 8th grade TAKS math or reading tests are far less likely to: •
Pass the 9th grade TAKS math and reading tests;
•
Complete and pass the 9th grade Algebra I course;
•
Stay enrolled in the Texas public school system;
•
Progress to the 11th grade on-time; and
•
Meet the 11th grade TAKS college-readiness standard.
The overwhelming evidence is that middle schools as a whole, across Texas and the nation, are not preparing all students to be successful in high school and therefore not all students are adequately prepared for a college/career as they exit high school.This has serious consequences not only for the individual students, but for states as well since an educated populace is associated with a more robust economy and lower spending in such areas as public assistance, prisons, and health care. Is the problem that educators don’t know what to do for students in middle school? Or is the problem that we have a significant “Knowing-Doing” gap, which means we know what should be done, but we don’t do it for various reasons. In reviewing the research, there are multiple examples of successful high performing middle schools, even examples of schools that serve student populations with large 1 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
percentages of economically disadvantaged and minority students. In analyzing the practices of such successful schools, a variety of researchers have identified some common characteristics and practices of successful middle school systems. Therefore, we appear to understand the “Know”(what should be done), so we need to focus on the “Doing” (implementing what we know works). This whitepaper is intended to provide the reader a snapshot of the common characteristics and practices that most successful middle schools are using. Ideally, other middle school leaders can learn from these successful schools and incorporate many of these components in their school systems in a manner that makes sense for them.
Common Characteristics and Practices Found in High Performing Middle Schools Middle school research studies found the following common characteristics and practices in high performing middle schools: •
Positive student-centric school culture;
•
High expectations;
•
A focus on individual students;
•
Collaborative working environment;
•
A stable supportive team of educators;
•
On-going curriculum study and improvement;
•
Monitoring of student learning and teacher effectiveness;
•
Leadership capacity; and,
•
Informed and systematic use of data by educators
These characteristics and practices are interdependent, as is evident when you read the descriptions of each. Positive Student-Centric School Culture Research has found a majority students experience a decrease in their self-esteem, sense of school belonging, perceptions of school safety, and interpersonal relationships when they enter middle school. This is extremely important because decreases in these areas are associated with decreased student performance, increased absenteeism, and with dropping out in the future. Successful middle schools address these issues by implementing robust programs throughout their system that address these student concerns. Some of the strategies that address the student/school relationship include: 2 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
•
Analyzing the academic and non-academic profiles of all incoming 6th graders in order to develop a customized plan for both academic and non-academic activities for each student as she/he moves through middle school;
•
Providing academically struggling students extra instructional time in math and reading to accelerate their rate of achievement so that they perform on or above grade level--this is not voluntary, it is mandated;
•
Including struggling students in honors/gifted programs with the appropriate supports such as those provided in the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program;
•
Including each student in developing her/his own high expectations and frequently engaging students in discussing and updating these expectations;
•
Implementing student support programs that provide peer assistance to students with both academic and non-academic difficulties;
•
Providing positive recognition for all types of students, not just outstanding students and athletes;
•
Ensuring positive teacher-student relationships through teacher training, teacher retention, and time for teachers and students to interact;
•
Adopting strategies that ensure the stability of teachers and school leaders so that educators know each other well and can establish and maintain strong, positive relationships with students;
•
Regularly measuring and analyzing of student morale to ensure positive progress and identifying problems quickly before they become overwhelming; and,
•
Developing and adopting a vision/mission statement, with accompanying values/ beliefs that focus on the academic and non-academic needs of all students.
An example would be Kelly Middle School, Eugene, Oregon http://www.ascd.org/publications/classroom-leadership/may2004/DefyingDemographics.aspx
High Expectations
In high performing middle schools, educators, parents, students and other stakeholders hold high expectations of themselves and each other. Moreover, these expectations are 3 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
frequently discussed within the school and in community forums. Specifically, highperforming middle schools hold high expectations that:
•
Are challenging and accompanied by the resources and support needed to achieve the expectations;
•
Include both the goals of the school and the individual expectations of each stakeholder that align with the goals of the school;
•
Are more than minimum standards such as simply passing the state standardized tests, but rather focus on ensuring students are college/career ready and wellprepared for rigorous high school courses; and,
•
Expect teachers to model behaviors consistent with the desired school culture. In other words, they “walk the talk”.
An example is Rockcastle County Middle School in Mount Vernon, Kentucky, http:// www.greatschools.org/kentucky/mount-vernon/1360-Rockcastle-County-Middle-School/ Focus on Individual Students As mentioned above, each student must perceive that they have a personal relationship with the school, through their teachers, administrators, staff and classmates. Individual academic/non-academic plans with targeted interventions are key to ensuring underachievers perform at a high level. Student motivation is strongly linked to studentteacher relationships, therefore this must be an area of continuous focus for the school. Some steps that will ensure these relationships occur and are sustained over time include the following: • • •
Provide training to teachers on how to reach out to all students in a classroom; ensure teachers learn about the whole student, not just their academic characteristics; Ensure teachers and students have time to interact outside the instructional time periods, either through time during a homeroom period or other times during the day; and, Teach students how to have positive relationships—not all students have the knowledge and skills to have positive relationships with other students or teachers when they enter middle school.
Example is Hambrick Middle School, Aldine, Texas http://www.greatschools.org/texas/ houston/194-Hambrick-Middle-School/ Collaborative Working Environment Research has consistently found that the development and maintenance of a collaborative working environment is absolutely essential. This implies that there are structures and 4 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
processes in place that provide teachers, administrators, staff and other stakeholders the knowledge and skills to know how to collaborate with other adults as well as the time to collaborate about the implementation of the components. The characteristics of schools with a strong collaborative environment include: •
There is strong professional development program that supports the implementation of research based best practices and is responsive to the performance data of the system;
•
The principal and school leaders model collaborative decision making in meetings at all levels within the school instructional structure;
•
The collaborative environment includes collaborative events with students and other stakeholders; and,
•
Strategic assessment of the entire staff is on-going with all appropriate stakeholders involved.
Example is Mesquite’s Middle School Data Analysis Team, Mesquite ISD, Texas Stable Supportive Team of Educators Research has shown that educator stability—including teachers, counselors, and school leaders—is associated with greater student achievement. This is especially true in schools serving a large percentage of students in poverty since such students often do not have stability in their personal lives.The reason behind this association is that educator stability is a necessary pre-requisite to the development and maintenance of a collaborative work environment and the development and sustainability of positive teacher-student relationships. Further, principal turnover leads to changing programs and visions that confuse teachers, students, and parents and cause anxiety. Some strategies for improving educator retention: •
Provide teachers with an opportunity to take on leadership roles for additional pay within the school setting, such as department chair, instructional coach, etc.;
•
Collect, analyze, and act on teacher and principal perceptions about their working conditions and relationships with other adults in the school; and,
•
Ensure teachers and school leaders perceive working conditions as positive.
On-going Curriculum Study and Improvement While other facets of teaching and learning are associated with student achievement, the curriculum that is used in the classroom directly impacts what students will and will not learn. A high-quality curriculum that challenges students as well as raises students’ interest in the subject-matter is absolutely critical to improving student achievement. Some suggestions for ensuring the adoption of an appropriate curriculum: 5 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
•
Ensuring that the curriculum that is being implemented is based on state/local standards;
•
Continuous assessment of the curriculum by staff to ensure the desired student achievement results. (If student achievement levels are not being met, one answer is revising the curriculum.);
•
Embedding visible activities in the curriculum that align to the desired culture of the school; and,
•
Assuring that the district’s written curriculum is being implemented in every classroom and is a centerpiece for teacher evaluation.
Example is Barren County Middle School, Glasgow, Kentucky. http:// www.middleweb.com/lipsitz.html Monitoring Student Learning and Teacher Effectiveness High-performing middle schools also consistently report that student achievement and teacher effectiveness are consistently monitored and strategies are adopted to address any problem areas identified. Importantly, high-performing schools report that they examine more than just standardized test scores because such scores only provide limited evidence about the student’s knowledge, skills, attitudes, behaviors, engagement, and perceptions. Further, high-performing schools expect more from their teachers than just improved test scores. Thus, again, teacher effectiveness is defined far more broadly than simple changes in test scores. Some common strategies of high performing schools in this area include: •
Regular monitoring of student learning, teacher effectiveness and behaviors by school instructional leaders is done with the purpose of improvement not blame;
•
Providing immediate, targeted, and documented support for any identified deficiencies by instructional leaders;
•
Collecting and analyzing data on school culture, working conditions, and student engagement; and,
•
Collecting and analyzing data on the implementation of individual interventions and the success of such interventions.
An example is Boulter Middle School, Tyler, Texas. http://www.tylerisd.org/Schools/ Boulter/ Leadership Capacity
6 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
A growing body of evidence has found that school leadership is the second most important school factor related to student achievement behind teacher quality. While teachers have a direct impact on student learning, school leaders have an indirect impact. Indeed, an effective school leader: •
Distributes leadership throughout the school by identifying and training teachers to take on specific leadership roles in the school;
•
Models quality communication and collaboration;
•
Holds high expectations for herself/himself as well as for all others in the school;
•
Collaboratively creates a vision/mission focused on maximizing the potential of all members of the school;
•
Includes students, teachers, other staff, parents, and community members in school life and collaborative decision-making; and,
•
Creates a succession plan for when she/he leaves the school.
Informed and Systematic Use of Data High-performing middle schools use data to inform, not drive, decisions. Schools that use data to drive decisions use narrow quantitative data from tests scores to make decisions. On the other hand, schools that use data to inform decisions collect a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative data on a wide variety of topics that are then used by educators using their professional judgment to make decisions. High-performing middle schools employ a number of different approaches to decision making, including: •
Collecting and analyzing a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative data on a wide variety of school issues, including, but not limited to student engagement, teacher effectiveness, teacher collaboration, teacher behaviors, teacher perceptions off working conditions, school leader perceptions of teachers and teaching, parent perceptions of the school, and student outcome data;
•
Including not just test scores in measuring student outcomes, but also examining student attendance, engagement, tardiness, behavior, and morale;
•
Analyzing the data includes an examination of achievement gaps between student sub-populations;
•
Relying on professional judgments when interpreting the data;
•
Aligning decisions with the vision and goals of the school; and,
•
Using the lens of “students come first” when using data and making decisions.
Example is Parkhill Middle School, Richardson, Texas. http://www.greatschools.org/ texas/dallas/5750-Parkhill-Junior-High-School/ 7 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
Conclusion There needs to be a renaissance in thinking of changing the vision of middle school. The renaissance vision must include significantly higher expectations for all stakeholders, with college/career readiness as a key component. It must also have a strong student by student relationship component that addresses the historical trend of decreasing of selfesteem of middle school students. This implies a strong, visible school culture that is embedded in the school curriculum and throughout all the student activities. The must be a continuity of staff, from teachers to administrators, whom work collaboratively with the purpose of implementing a robust, challenging and fun learning experience for all students with the purpose of getting students college/career ready for high school. The challenge is “doing” what we “know” needs to be done. References
ACT, 2008, The Forgotten Middle: Ensuring That All Students are on Target for College and Career Readiness before High School
ASCD, Classroom Leadership, May 2004, Volume 7 Number 8, Defying Demographics: A New Schedule and Positive Change at Kelly Middle Schoolhttp://www.ascd.org/publications/classroom-leadership/may2004/ Defying-Demographics.aspx
Brownson, A., Kahlert R., Picucci, A. Sobel, A., (September 2004, Middle School Journal, Volume 36, Number 1), Middle School Concept Helps High Poverty Schools Become High Performing Schools\
Driven to Succeed: High-Performing, High Poverty, Turnaround Middle Schools, 2002, Charles A. Dana Center, University of Texas at Austin
Johnson, S.E. June 2006, Closing the Minority Achievement Gap in Georgia Middle Schools: Principals’ Perspectives, Dissertation, Georgia Southern University
Kipnes K., Weiss C., February 2006 Volume 112 Number 2, American Journal of Education, Reexamining Middle School Effects: A Comparison of Middle 8 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
Grades Students in Middle Schools and K-8 Schools,http://www.jstor.org/ stable/10.1086/498996
Kirst, M., Rosin M., Williams T. January 2011 Number 1 American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy, Gaining Ground in Middle Grades
Lipsitz, J., High Performing Middle Schools, www.midleweb.com/lipsitz.html
Middle School Journal, March 2002, Volume 33 Number 4 Pages 7-16, Common Elements of High Performing, High Poverty Middle Schools,http:// www.nmsa.org/publications/MiddleSchoolJournal/Articles
Middle School Journal, November 2004, Volume 36, Number 2, Pages 4-12, Creating High Performing Middle Schools in Segregated Settings: 50 years after Brown, http://www.nmsa.org/publications/MiddleSchoolJournal/Articles
National Center for Educational Achievement (NCEA), 2009, Preparation Matters
Norton, R., 2011,What Makes an Excellent Middle School?,http:// www.suite101.com/content/what-makes-an-excellent-middle-schoola336571#ixzz1Cx36XffC
School Climate Differences between High-Performing and Low-Performing Schools that Serve High-Poverty Populations, 2008, National Council of Professors of Educational Administration, http://cnx.org/content/m19508/latest/
Ventura, Y. V., August 2008, School-wide Implementation of the Elements of Effective Classroom Instructions: Lessons from High-Performing High Poverty Urban School, Dissertation, Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California 9 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success
10 Key Research Findings Associated with Middle School Student Success