What is excellent schooling for this age group? It is difficult to answer that question because there is no consensus about middle school. No other level of education is so poorly defined. Some teachers at this level have prepared to teach in high school, with little background or knowledge of child and early adolescent development. Others are elementary teachers with insufficient preparation in subject areas which they will be teaching. Parents often are puzzled about new behavior patterns and concerned about what kind of schooling their children should receive as they move toward more independence. With all these strikes against them, it is truly a wonder that middle schools function as well as they do.

The problem with doing research on middle schools is that often when a school changes from a junior high school to a middle school, the change is in name only. What happens in many cases is that a high school foresees a dwindling enrollment and recognizes that there will soon be empty classrooms. At the same time there is an increase in number of students in the lower grades. So the school board makes a decision to move the ninth grade into the high school. Along with the move there is an agreement to call the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades "middle school," but in some cases there is no change in concept of schooling for those grades. The name has been changed, but the school continues to follow the pattern of the traditional junior high. In such cases, research on the effect of change will show nothing at all because there has been no change.

We are at a time when there is new sophistication in educational research. We have learned from the business world how to do "outlier studies." In business if you want to know how to be successful you look at businesses which have been identified as being better than mediocre. Then you concentrate on trying to learn what makes the best become the best. While in business outlier research concentrates on highly profitable, productive corporations, in education the studies focus on a search for the most successful schools and teachers.

There is a great deal of literature available concerning characteristics of effective schools for grades six, seven, and eight. However, effective schools are not necessarily successful schools. Effective schools are considered to be those schools which are safe and orderly and where students perform reasonably well on achievement tests. Effectiveness is the least we should expect of schools. Successful schools, however, according to George and Oldaker, are schools which are not only effective, but have a reputation for academic excellence, have good attendance, have good student behavior in school, have parents who are satisfied with the school, have students who are satisfied with school life, and have a reputation for excellence in the community (George & Oldaker, 1985).

One of the first outlier studies in education at middle school level was done by Rutter in 12 schools in inner city London. In Rutter’s study all of the schools examined were called junior highs, and had the same grade levels, the same physical characteristics, the same socio-economic background of students. Rutter's study, along with many others, confirms the importance of a school having high academic standards, promoting direct instruction along with homework, and other related matters which help teachers, students, and parents take schooling seriously. However, Rutter found the really significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful schools was in the area of psychosocial environment (Rutter, Maughan, Mortimore, & Ouston, 1979).

Academically successful schools were those in which the teachers and students thought of themselves as members of the same team. Teachers and students in these successful schools created an "ethos of caring." The teachers were working and planning together, were promoting increased responsibilities and participation of students, and were establishing stable teaching and friendship groups that lasted from year to year. Rutter concluded, after four years of study, that the crucial differences between the academically successful schools and those that were unsuccessful depended on whether or not the school effectively attended to the social side of learning.

When you compare Rutter's findings with our own goals in the Christian school there is an interesting similarity. We want to help our students become academically successful. We want to help students understand their responsibility in caring for each other, in planning as a group, and in working toward a common goal. We want them to develop an ethos of caring while they are being and becoming disciples of Jesus Christ. If those goals are important to us, then we will need to give careful consideration to the social side of learning.

In 1984 Phi Delta Kappan published a study of 500 schools (Levine, Levine & Eubanks) looking for characteristics of schools that had "good discipline." Schools in which students had exceptionally good behavior were unique in the following ways: 1) they found ways to improve how people worked together to solve problems; 2) they developed the means to reduce authority and status differences among all persons in the school; 3) they increased and widened the students' sense of belonging in the school; 4) they found ways to deal with the personal problems that affect life within the school, often by using advisor-advisee programs; and 5) they tried to Improve the physical and organizational arrangements so that these factors reinforced other activities.

Most studies conclude that specific characteristics are found in schools that are successful in such areas as scores on achievement tests, attendance, behavior in school, parental satisfaction with school, student satisfaction with school life, and a reputation for excellence in the community. In addition, if a Christian middle school is going to promote responsible discipleship, other characteristics will be present. The following statements can be used for discussion by teachers, parents, and school boards examining their own schools.

In the school in which I teach:

1. Teachers and students work together and think of themselves as members of a team in school matters.

always occurs sometimes occurs but needs improvement

2. There is an "ethos of caring" among students and among teachers.

always present sometimes present but needs improvement

3. Teachers work together and plan jointly to promote increased responsibility and participation of students.

always occurs sometimes occurs seldom occurs

4. Stable teaching and friendship groups develop and last more than one year.

always occurs sometimes occurs but needs improvement

5. Teachers and students work together to solve problems instead of teachers imposing restrictions.

always occurs sometimes occurs seldom occurs

6. Means have been found to increase and widen the students’ sense of belonging in the school.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

7. Teacher advisor-advisee programs are in place.

yes not at the present time

8. The school has been arranged so that cooperation in all areas is the norm rather than relying on academic or athletic competition.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

9. The curriculum has been carefully structured to promote a positive learning climate, not just because it leads to academic achievement, but because it is something which possesses intrinsic value in the education of young adolescents.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

10. Students are clearly working toward taking responsibility for their own learning.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

1 I. Students are showing willingness to take responsibility for each other's learning and nurture.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

12.The curriculum is diversified enough so that students are able to explore and develop their varied gifts.

yes, to a great extent needs improvement

But what of schools which are not considered successful? Among the characteristics that keep them from succeeding are the following:

1. Failure to work out carefully stated goals for the school and failure to use school goals in ongoing planning.

2. Lack of strong, instructional leadership on the part of the principal, which results in a lack of unity of purpose. This is often because the principal has not had training for this kind of administration.

3. Lack of in-school time for curriculum planning by teachers. Without such planning, integrated units failed to take shape and appropriate instruction failed to occur.

4. Failure to consult with elementary and high school representatives in planning the program.

5. Planning is only for short-term units rather than for long-term goals.

6. Teachers have been poorly prepared for the change because of lack of in-service training. Their own teacher preparation programs have been part of elementary or secondary degree programs and therefore inadequate for this level.

7. Failure to budget adequately for the necessary changes.

8. Teaching methods which emulate the traditional junior high and high school models with emphasis on lecture, recitation, static grouping, and a heavy reliance on the textbook for setting the curriculum.

9. Too little regard for achievement test scores.

1O. Little communication and sharing among teachers and administrators from other middle schools with common goals.

Recently the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development released a report on schooling for this age group (Turning Points, 1989). The conclusion was that education that is appropriate for young adolescents involves eight essential principles.

1. School should be a place where close relationships with adults and peers create a climate for personal growth and intellectual development (p. 37). The report concludes that large middle schools guarantee that the intellectual and emotional needs of youth will go unmet. What students need at this level is to be able to rely on a small, caring group of adults who provide coordinated, integrated, meaningful educational experiences while getting to know students well enough to teach them as individuals.

2. Every student in the middle grades should learn to think critically through mastery of an appropriate body of knowledge, lead a healthy life, behave ethically, and assume the responsibilities of citizenship in a pluralistic society (p. 42). The report calls for teaching a core of common knowledge at this level that integrates English, fine arts, foreign languages, history, literature grammar, mathematics, science, and social studies. But often a broad core will lack depth, and the report calls for students taught to think about and express themselves about topics that range across each subject, rather than simply demonstrating competency in the subject matter. In addition, students must learn study and to test successfully.

3. All young adolescents should have the opportunity to succeed in every aspect of the middle-grade program, regardless of previous achievement or the pace at which they learn (p. 49). The report calls for ensuring successful completion of the c instructional program on the part of every student. Schools must encourage students who fall short of success to try again, schools must use every means to help them succeed. These means include using small groups for learning, scheduling classroom periods to maximize learning, and expanding the structure of opportunity for learning.

4. Adults who know them best (p. 54) should make decisions concerning the experiences of middle-grade students. The report states that teachers must have greater authority to make decisions and responsibility for the consequences of those decisions. Students should be able to witness teachers making decisions and discussing important ideas so that increasingly the students themselves can become part of decisions affecting their education.

5. Teachers in middle-grade schools should be selected specially educated to teach young adolescents (p. 58). Administrators and teachers of middle school students should understand adolescent development and be sensitive to cultural differences. They will need education in principles of guidance to serve as advisors. Teachers who are certified to teach in either elementary or secondary levels should take graduate courses directed toward middle school teaching and then receive a supplemental endorsement to teach at that level.
6. Young adolescents must be healthy in order to learn (p. 60). Middle-grade schools must accept responsibility and be provided with sufficient resources to ensure that health services are accessible to young adolescents and that schools become health-promoting environments.
7. Families and middle-grade schools must be allied through trust and respect if young adolescents are to succeed in school (p. 66). In the belief that they should increasingly disengage from their young adolescents, some parents have come to view involvement in their child's education as unnecessary. Many middle-grade schools do not encourage parent involvement, and some teachers and administrators consider parents to be part of the problem. While young adolescents need greater autonomy, they also need to see that parents and school staff have mutual trust and respect. Middle-grade schools must re-engage families by offering parents meaningful roles in school governance, keeping parents informed about curriculum and instruction, and offering families information about ways they can support the learning process at home and at school.
8. Schools and community organizations should share responsibility for each middle-grade student's success. The report states that this can be done by placing students in community services, ensuring student access to health and social services, making certain that the community supports the middle-grade education program, making certain that the community augments resources for teachers and students, and encouraging the community to help expand career guidance for students.

Research has shown that the most successful middle schools are carefully organized and structured to help students at a very tumultuous, unsettled time in their lives. They are structured in ways that do not require more self-discipline than students are capable of exercising but provide students with the opportunity to learn self-discipline. They do not offer more freedom than students can handle but help students learn to use freedom wisely.

1. Are you as a staff in agreement in your responses to the questionnaire? Where do disagreements occur?

2. How can you work together to avoid the mistakes of the unsuccessful schools?

3. What is your response to the report of the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development?