MIDDLE SCHOOLS EASE TOUGH YEARS

Daniel Hartle, left, and Brent Lewis, seventh-grade students, examined protozoans and algae with a microscope.

Seventh-grade students Sara Campbell, left, Mandy James and Sara Ratcliff made peanut butter and jelly popcorn in their life skills class.

Across the country, organizations are taking a fresh look at middle schools and the adolescents who attend them.

The Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development, established in 1986 to draw attention to young people's needs, recently released "Great Tribulations: Preparing Adolescents for a New Century." The book covers the health and education of adolescents and offers goals for parents, teachers and communities.

This week, the National Middle School Association released "This We Believe: Developmentally Responsive Middle Level Schools," a position paper calling for dramatic changes in the education of 10- to 15-year-olds.

But those involved in educating middle-school students always recognized that adolescence is a special time. Physical, emotional and social changes can make middle school tough on students.

Marjorie George has been a guidance counselor at L.J. Schultz Middle School for 14 years, and she agrees with the concept of putting middle-school children in their own setting. She said it would be better to take them away from the elementary-school setting earlier than seventh grade, but two bond issues to do that in Cape Girardeau have failed.

"Changing from an elementary school to middle school is a big transition," George said. "For one thing, they are coming from six elementary schools and some parochial schools. There are a mass of kids together for the first time, learning to get along with all these different people."

Along with that challenge, she said, the students' hormones are beginning to kick in and change the way adolescents look and feel. They may be moody and dislike themselves. They want independence, but they want to be coddled.

When these students are set aside in their own school, they can be taught and helped in the best way.

Jackson Middle School has both sixth- and seventh-grade students, ages 11-13, Dr. Dan Beard said. As a middle-school principal for the first time this year, Beard had to study the age group of the students he guides and consider their special needs.

He said the middle-school years can make or break students, depending on how well they're taught.

"There are always exceptions, but it seems some decisions are hitting kids earlier now than in years past," Beard said. "This is a key age, and we can tailor the school for our students and a lot of good things can happen for them."

In Jackson, middle-school students take classes in industrial technology, life skills and learning skills so they can make better educational, social and career choices.

They also have a "main base" teacher, who encourages students to come to him or her with questions and problems.

Jackson is on the right track, according to the National Middle School Association's paper. The writers said responsive middle schools provide a challenging curriculum, varied teaching approaches, programs that foster wellness and comprehensive guidance and support services.~

"Successful middle-level schools are grounded in the understanding that young adolescents are capable of far more than adults often assume," the paper said.