It saddens me to see our middle school student supported so much during the middle years, and then to know full well that these support systems will not be in place for them next year. I joined a mentor program this year, hoping to be of some assistance to kids in need of connecting with previous support systems at the middle level. Transition issues, unfortunately quite vexing indeed! One of the areas that we as teachers feel powerless at times in making a difference. So much disconnect between levels from elementary to middle and middle to high, causing so many problems for students which are severely detrimental to a positive, educational experience. The questions raised are: How do we best confront and deal with these issues? What can we as teachers do to assist our students in experiencing positive transition experience? We may sometimes think that the special education student will experience the most difficulty with transitioning between levels, however upon further investigation we see that the grade level and student most affected by transition issues is the ninth grader. Ninth grade level students are at the highest risk for problems with transition issues; problems which will result in student drop out and or non promotion to the next year. In Curriculum 21, Hayes Jacobs promotes the many options that we now have due to the flexibility of technology which address these ninth grade transition issues.
Focusing on the ninth grader and the difficulty that they experience, here are some of their issues: “On average, ninth graders report being less involved in school activities and perceive the need for more school organization. They also indicate lower self -esteem and higher rates of depression than middle school students (Barber &Olsen,2004).”
Looking at “The First Year of High School: A Quick Stats Fact Sheet.” by Elizabeth Williams and Scott Richman, AIR, at betterhighschools.org, “Research has shown us that resources and strategies that include the following practices will support and guide smooth transitions into high school: “aligned standards and curriculum, team teaching, catch up course work in the first semester using the double block schedule, student advisories. at risk benchmarks, academic benchmarks, and adolescent literacy initiatives.”
Here is where technology which transcends issues of time and space in the scheduled curriculum can help. I know a few school systems that would benefit by putting this research into practice, and utilizing more technology to assist in their transition issues.(I’m sure you do too!)
I think you make some really good points. The differences between middle school and high school can be huge. That may be manageable for some students but really won't be for those on the edge. I know some schools have programs for 9th graders who might have difficulty and I think that's a great idea but it might be that more attention is also paid to those who might slip through the cracks. Making the transitions smoother seems like a simple idea but it can be one with a tremendous impact.
ReplyDeleteIn Maine we have real opportunities, given the relatively small size of school districts, to talk face-to-face about transition issues...particularly between the middle and high schools. But that means more than simply sending lists of kids who ml teachers think are eligible for certain hs courses. And from the hs side, teachers and administrators must be willing to find out what ml kids have learned at the ml. Good points, Jane!
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