Middle School Grade Configuration Essay

Grade configuration in the nineteenth century consisted of kindergarten through the eighth grade. The concept of middle school was introduced in the beginning of the twentieth century (McFarland, 2007). This introduction also proposed the concern and question regarding how middle school grades should be configured. Since the beginning of this introduction, the configurations have continued to change and consisted of grades 6-9, 6-8 and 7-8. Currently, the most common configurations are 6-8 and 7-8 grades. The deeper consideration that lies within middle school configurations, is student success during these transitions. This paper will focus on the success of student transitions from elementary school to middle school. The independent variables

Both teachers and administration need to be held accountable for their actions and professional judgement (Erb, 2006). The success and change in students, is influenced by the changes and actions of the educators working directly with the students (Erb, 2006). Schmitt, focuses on professional development and student success. She expresses that to achieve high levels of student achievement, teachers need to first be skillful and knowledgeable in their methods. This also applies to schools making the commitment to continuously support teachers' ongoing learning (Schmitt, 2004). This ongoing learning will require schools to create professional development teams of teachers. This will allow teachers to discuss change, student needs and build a sense of solidarity within their school (Schmitt, 2004). The sense of solidarity will promote school attachment among students. Studies have shown that school attachment gives students a sense of belonging (Carolan, Chesky, 2012). This has positive influences on academic progress and participation in extracurricular activities (Carolan, 2012). Data has indicated that students attending high professional development sites scored at the “Proficient” and “Advanced” levels on communication arts tests in 2001(Schmitt, 2004). In the 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 academic years, students that attended high professional development sites consistently scored higher on the state’s communication arts and mathematics assessments. Supporting teacher’s professional development will contribute to the success of students in all