CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE (SCHOOL): SCHOOL REFOMRERS SAY STUDENTS BEING CHEATED AT CRITICAL STAGE

Educators recognize the middle school years as a make-it-or-break it time when students make lasting educational decisions. Some set goals toward their secondary education, while others give up on school performance and begin mentally dropping out of school, even though they can't physically leave for a few more years.

Cape Girardeau school officials are turning their attention to those students as they complete planning for a new, four-year high school to open in fall 2002. They will reconfigure grade levels throughout the district, creating a fifth- and sixth-grade center and seventh- and eighth-grade junior high -- all grades most commonly associated with middle schools.

Although assistant superintendent Mark Bowles says plans haven't been solidified, the chief goals will be to establish a variety of programs to stimulate students academically and meet their individual needs -- lofty aspirations many middle schools have failed to achieve, according to a recent series in Education Week, a trade magazine that studies educational issues and trends.

The series concluded that many middle schools are operating with poorly trained teachers and have poorly developed academic goals for students.

Educators from across the nation are advocating middle school reform that begins raising the bar on academic achievement and requires improved, specialized training for middle school teachers.

"The middle school is the crux of the whole problem and really the point where we begin to lose it," said William H. Schmidt, a professor of education at Michigan State University quoted in the report. Schmidt called the grade levels "an intellectual wasteland" where students are ill-prepared for secondary education.

School creation

About 30 years ago, the nation's school officials found they could conveniently pull fifth- and sixth-graders out of bulging elementary schools and take seventh-graders out of junior high schools to alleviate crowding and put them in new buildings.

The movement became more popular after educators discovered they could develop academic and social programming to benefit an age group that was transitioning from childhood to teen age years at a rapid pace.

The onset of puberty generally begins during the middle grade years, when students are 10-14 years old. Children are in the midst of rapid physical development, a new sexual awareness, and the beginnings of peer pressure.

"I think most educators see clearly we're talking about a unique age of kids," Bowles said. "We have learned that the name of the school has little to do with whether it was a middle school it's really all about the programs."

But middle school reformists question whether most middle school teachers are qualified to carry out programs designed for middle school students.

Ann Milam, an English teacher in Cape Girardeau's Schultz School seventh-grade center, is one of a handful of district teachers who hold specialized licenses to teach middle school. Missouri developed a middle school teacher's license option only five years ago, but few applicants are seeking them.

Instead, they are applying for broader elementary or secondary certification that overlaps the middle grades in an effort to make them more attractive to potential employers.

At Schultz, just three of the school's 45 teachers have middle school certification. And none of the 45 teachers at Jackson Middle School have the specialized certification, although several teachers in other buildings are licensed to teach middle grades.

But local school officials say they don't perceive that as a problem.

Dr. Dan Beard is principal at Jackson Middle School and recently taught middle school coursework at Southeast Missouri State University. Beard said the middle school certification is not a primary factor for teaching that age level.

"The certification is a plus, but I think the biggest factor is that the teacher be one who likes teaching and likes students at that age level," he said.

Bowles said the middle school certification indicates a teacher has received extra training and has an additional interest in working with middle level students, but it's not a requirement for employment.

Middle school reformists believe students would benefit academically if teachers received specialized training. According to a forthcoming report sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, overlapping teacher's licenses that cover extended grade levels such as K-6, 6-9, and 7-12 send the message that middle school is unimportant.

The report, "Turning Points 2000: Educating Adolescents in the 21st Century," urges states to enact more stringent licensure requirements and for universities to develop better training programs for middle school educators, including fieldwork with students.

Cape Girardeau's new middle school centers much like the one in Jackson will be formed more for convenience than reform, and school officials say they are not yet sure how programming will be implemented.

Much of the decision will be determined by the community. Bowles said middle school programming can seem meaningless if impact on individual students is not considered.

"Someone looking for accountability and obvious outcomes won't think that it's justified to hire additional teachers and create team strategies," Bowles said. "When you adopt programs like advisory groups that are very counseling-oriented for this age group, it's difficult to track that and show significant score increases. But even if it doesn't help their scores going up, at least it helps with their identification with the school. And that's something we all want to see happen."

New challenges

During the middle school years, students typically encounter high levels of peer pressure to form or break friendships, become sexually active and use drugs and alcohol. Historically, schools begin to introduce programming to educate students on the importance of their decisions during these years.

Both Schultz and Jackson Middle School offer anti-substance abuse programming and health classes that address human development sexual activity.

But teachers said the programming is only a part of what students need.

"Sometimes it's just about establishing a connection with them," said Phil Mayhall, a Spanish teacher at Schultz. "I try to relate my classwork to the music and shows they're interested in. They're just amazed someone as old as me can connect with them and even know what that is."

Most parents recognize the changes their children are experiencing, but they don't know how to explain the turbulent period to youth.

Beverly Delph, whose son, Xavier, attends Louis J. Schultz School, volunteers as a cheerleading squad sponsor at the seventh grade center.

"These are my babies, but sometimes I just don't know what to tell them," said Delph. "You know they're good kids, but it's just a rough time for them, and for us parents, too."

Jackson Middle School math teacher Jo Cooley said students can be very needy and "will want to crawl in your lap" one day, but act extremely mature the next.

Guessing games

Teachers said they play a daily guessing game because they never know if their meekest student will blow off steam or their rowdiest student will bring them a greeting card.

But regardless of the students' fluctuations, teachers must provide stability and be prepared for anything, they said.

"It's very difficult to be consistent, but it's very important," Milam said. "Developing relationships is an individual effort for teachers, but usually, if you know how to give the verbal praise and attention they still need but learn how to do it very privately, you can get through to them."

And the same connections can and should be nurtured at home. Middle school students said they do listen to their parents and want to know they can talk with them, even if they choose not to do so.

"I think that's sad" some kids can't talk to their parents, said Roxanne Roxas, 12, of Jackson.

Students said it's more important than ever that parents express their values about academic achievement, friendships, and decision-making with their middle-schoolers. And they should let their children know they're proud of them.

"We're listening to them. Besides, that's what they're there for," said Schultz student Kasey Neal, 13.

License status

Few Missouri teachers have the certification.

Since 1995, Missouri teachers have been able to obtain a specialized license to teach middle school students in grades 5-9. Few teachers in either Jackson or Cape Girardeau schools have the specialized certification.

Jackson Middle School

674 students in sixth and seventh grades

45 teachers

All certificates are either lifetime certificates to teach grades 1-8 or 7-12.

Louis J. Schultz School

344 students in seventh grade

30 teachers

3 teachers with middle school certification