The Critical Ingredients
of a Middle Level School
The question was posed on the Middle-L listserve: "What's the critical
ingredient found in the best middle level schools?" Here are some of
the answers:
Interdisciplinary Teams
If I had to name one critical ingredient for a quality middle school program
it would have to be intact interdisciplinary teams, with at least one hour
per day of team planning time in addition to individual planning time, the
power to make day-to-day decisions to meet the needs of the team's students,
and a flexible block of time in which to function.
Howard Miller
MiddleDoc@aol.com
"I agree" interdisciplinary teams are critical
I agree completely about the importance of functioning interdisplinary teams.
I have been a part of such a team for the last 4 years. We (7th grade teachers)
began asking the administration for planning time together a few years ago.
After a while we got tired of hearing the excuses and began meeting once
a week on our own time at lunch. These meetings not only made our classes
run smoother, they gave each of us a chance to lean on each other for support.
We were able to find ways to integrate our curriculum, plan parent-teacher
conferences together(how nice to be able to meet difficult parents as a
team), coordinate our classroom expectations so the students had consistent
rules in each of our classes, and many more things too numerous to mention.
I begin a new assignment this year so I'll miss out on the "team".
Our administration took notice of the positive results that our team planning
produced, but unfortunately, they still have their "excuses" for
not providing the planning time!!
Sue Jones
Willcox(AZ) Middle School
Team preparation should be a given in every middle school
Sue, how sad, isn't it? Your team does the "right thing" for students,
but at the expense of "a duty-free lunch period". Now that your
team has made lunch into a "work" period, why would your administrators
decide to pay you for an additional preparation period? You're doing it
for free now; what's the incentive for the administration/Board?
I don't know how long you've been in a middle school, team concept, but
I always thought that team prep, in addition to individual prep, was a given.
I don't understand how districts can adopt this philosophy, but then undermine
it by not providing time (which equals $$$) for team prep.
Denise Funfsinn
6th grade Earlville School
Earlville, IL
Lunch meetings not a good model
Sue, it is commendable that your team met over lunch, but I don't want this
to be a model to be followed by others. Routinely giving up what little
"free time" (now, that's an oxymoron for you!) you've got leads
to early burnout. Administrators are reluctant to provide team planning
time because of the expense. An hour of team planning time costs the equivalent
of 2/3 of a teacher's salary. What we need to do is center the conversation
on the value rather than the expense.
Howard Miller
MiddleDoc@aol.com
Principal leadership the critical ingredient
How about a principal who has the ability to lead the teachers toward a
true middle school concept. One who has a "plan" and shares that
plan w/the staff so that they are not in the dark. Finally, one who has
not been pulled out of retirement/consulting work and who plans on staying
to see that "plan" implemented!
Guess you can tell what my middle school DOESN'T have!
Debbie Rudy-Lack
Principals must be willing to set clear expectations
Debbie is right, You need a good principal with the characteristics she
listed and willing to state things clearly to the students including that
we expect them to be learning. I taught through a series of revolving principals
and it was not until we had one with a clear vision who supported teachers
promoting education that we had a good school. However, I would also say
that the most critical element is teachers dedicated and determined that
students will learn.
Mary E. Haas
Staff must be willing to work toward a common vision
The most critical ingredient has to be a staff that is willing to work together
towards a vision of what an exemplary middle school is. The teachers are
all important, but so are the principal, other administration, and all classified
employees. If a spirit of cooperation exists along with the desire to grow
continually change can and will happen. I've seen this personally in my
school.
Pam
Well-prepared teachers
I think that the most critical ingredient is (or are :-) ) teachers that
are well prepared to teach at the middle school level.
Amy Martin
F. B. Leon Guerrero Middle School
Yigo, Guam
Broad-based community support
I think all of you have hit on many critical ingredients. I also think there
is no way we can just pick one ingredient. The one major ingredient that
hasn't been thrown into the mix yet is broad-based parent/community support.
Get parents and communities to buy into your school , then stand back and
watch things happen !!! Principal as instructional leader, faculty/staff/students/parents/community
working together and district offices to funnel in the money - Voila!- instant
success!
Michael Fleming
A good advisory program still important to middle schoolers
I just got back from a much needed vacation in my home state of Colorado.
Being in Nebraska, now, I need a yearly "fix" of rarefied mountain
air. I have enjoyed going through the "critical ingredient" thread.
My
good friend Howard Miller, did a nice job, as usual, of verbalizing an important
part of the middle school philosophy.
I would like to add another-probably the most controversial ingredient of
the middle school philosophy- ADVISORY or HOMEBASE.
The middle school movement was predicated on the belief that 10-14 year
olds were different from elementary and high school students and therefore
had different needs. The concept of middle school was to help meet those
needs-specifically the physical, intellectual, emotional, and social (PIES)
needs of our students.
The idea of advisory was to help students get a handle on their emotional
and social (personal) needs. According to Chris Stevenson's "Teaching
10-14 Year Old Learners" (A book that got many "thumbs-up"
earlier this summer on this list serve):
"Through the fraternal atmosphere that can be developed within small
groups such as advisories, educators have their best chance to successfully
respond to many of those needs...Kids recognize when teachers are listening
authentically to them, looking for ways to help them have a better time
being a student. And the fact that the effort is being made is persuasive
in itself, whether or not that student has things exactly as he or she might
want them (p. 305).
Stevenson goes on to explain that many teachers are uncomfortable with the
role of advisor and teaching in the affective realm because they are not
prepared for such responsibility. During my 23 years as a middle level teacher
I LOVED the advisory aspect and made it a point to be an advocate for my
advisees. However, many of my colleagues did not embrace this role. I don't
know if it takes a certain kind of personality, a certain belief in the
goodness or badness of people, or what.
In our middle level teaching preparation program here at UN-L, we spend
a lot of time working with our undergraduates in the area of advising and
teaching in the affective realm. Most of the students come in apprehensive
of this role, but we actually set them up in advisory groups, role-model
and simulate various advisory activities, and the students develop a year-long,
well-planned, advisory portfolio. When they enter their first year of teaching,
they can actually "carry" their interdisciplinary team with an
effective advisory program/portfolio in place.
There are several middle level writers, including J.
Howard Johnston, who are arguing that advisory is no longer a critical
ingredient of middle schools. He is right, if the advisory role is simply
to "do something cute" with the students for 15-20 minutes a day.
For me, advisory is advocacy, and it goes on all day long, even into the
evening and week-ends if necessary. My wife (a middle school teacher) and
I have sat with advisees in juvenile court because the parents could not/or
would not attend. We were the only adults there for the students. I could
list hundreds of times when I was the only meaningful adult for a student
in any number of situations.
I don't know what the answer is for teachers whose professional training
did not include advisory, advocacy, and teaching in the affective realm.
During the '70's, we had a lot of in-service training when we made the move
from junior high to middle school. It's my belief that with tax revolts
and cut-backs in education budgets, in-service money is drying up. Teachers
aren't getting the in-service training they once did.
Chris Stevenson suggests that to have an effective advisory program, the
following are essential:
--Teacher Commitment
--Preparation through Planning
--Support
I believe Advisory is still a critical ingredient. It's been maligned because
in many cases, it was never given Stevenson's 3 essential elements. In-service
is needed to help teachers see the value of advisory and advocacy and learn
how to deal with the social/emotional/ personal needs of students and teach
in the affective realm. Teachers need time off to plan effective and meaningful
advisory programs and/or get paid to develop advisory programs during the
summer. Administrators need to support the concept of advisory. I had a
principal that expected the advisor to come into his office and advocate
for a student that he was thinking about suspending or disciplining in some
manner. Many times, the effective advisory knew of some mitigating circumstances
of which the principal was unaware.
That's my (very long) 2 cents worth. There's nothing like a good vacation
to get the brain cells working again!
Bill Lopez
Middle Level Education Studies Center
118 Henzlik Hall
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
See this earlier
listserv discussion on advisory programs at Jerry Taylor's website.