The Middle School Mess

The majority of tweens find themselves being educated in middle schools between the fifth through eighth grades.  This article takes a look at the history, wisdom and current trends of middle schools.  The article targets principals, teachers, and parents as its audience. It seems that the idea of middle schools historically came about after educators, not mistakenly, identified tweens as suspended "between childhood and the adult world”, and that “pre-teens have been called the toughest to teach."  As we have discovered, tweens do in fact hold a unique place in the physical, intellectual and emotional development of human beings. The article aptly describes tweens as youngsters whose "bodies and psyches morph through the most radical changes since infancy, leaving them torn between anxiety and ardor, dependence and autonomy, conformity and rebellion. "The middle school model was to provide this unique group of students with a safe and nurturing environment where they would have more opportunity for self-discovery, exercise, exploration, resources for their growing needs and a lessened emphasis on academic subjects.

Perhaps the grand experiment has failed. The deemphasis of academic subjects, not surprisingly, has left middle schoolers, in general, scoring low in both math and English on standardized tests. Several studies cited in the article confirm the low academic achievement of students enrolled in middle schools.  A powerful conclusion is that “These statistics about young adolescents' poor academic performance suggest that many middle-grades schools are failing to enable the majority of their students to achieve at anywhere near adequate levels."

With the evidence mounting, many parents are leading the call to eliminate middle schools and return to a K-8 and 9-12 model for education.  The K-8 model is also confirmed through studies as an environment where tweens actually have higher academic achievement.  Studies also support the finding that K-8 schools reduce behavioral problems.  A study as recent as 2010 in New York concludes that middle schools are not the best way to educate students and that “ the effects are large, present for both math and English, and evident for girls as well as boys.”

There is a trend across America to move away from the middle school. In 2005, there were 9000+ middle schools and today that number is down to 7,950.  My sense from the article which is well written and research supported is that a return to the K-8 model is worth considering.

Meyer, P. (2011). The Middle School Mess. Education Next, 11(1), 40-7. Retrieved from                

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