We conduct an analogous analysis of high - school entry, taking advantage of the different
grade configurations of the schools students attended in 6th grade.
Because the studies use data from a single school year to contrast students in middle schools and K — 8 schools, most of the available research can not reject the possibility that differences between the groups of students, rather than in
the grade configuration of their schools, are actually responsible for the differences in behavior and achievement.
Could something as simple as changing
the grade configuration of schools improve academic outcomes?
In recognition of the association noted above — that suspension rates differ by
the grade configuration of schools — performance levels are different for elementary, middle, and high schools.
Superintendent Tommy Chang presented a plan to the Boston School Committee that would eliminate middle schools and change
the grade configuration of other schools in Boston so that students only have to change schools once during their education, James Vaznis reports in the Boston Globe.
Table 3 - 2 exhibits
the grade configuration of schools.
Not exact matches
Our food -
grade conveyors are designed to adjust to your packaging line
configuration and to accommodate a huge range
of extensions like spacing wheels, transfer plates, reject stations, corner turntables, bottle indexing air cylinders and more.
Capacity: The new two - story facility, with a capacity
of 1,600 students (an increase
of 400 from the former campus), allows for the standard middle school
configuration of Grades 6 - 8 on one campus... which provides sixth - graders with greater opportunity for academic rigor, fine arts and career electives and athletic and extra-curricular activities, as well as 30 additional minutes
of instructional time each day, compared to an elementary schedule.
In New York City, the Executive Budget also requires that a charter's entire planned
grade configuration — elementary, middle or high school — be located within a single building including
grade levels not yet in operation at the time
of opening.
This is a schematic illustration
of the multilayer
configuration with layers
of different porosity (
graded porous material).
In Florida,
grade configuration is not a primary driver
of the estimated positive effects
of charter high schools on attainment.
In last year's fall issue
of Education Next Columbia Business School researchers Jonah Rockoff and Benjamin Lockwood reported their findings from a review
of almost ten years
of data for Gotham school children who were in
grades 3 though 8, in all different school
grade configurations, and concluded rather ominously:
Perrotti makes the comparison that, years ago, when we first started talking about different
configurations of families or students, educators often worried about how to talk to young kids «about sex» when those kinds
of discussions in schools didn't happen until at least fifth
grade.
The researchers also conducted a test - score analysis separately for schools in Miami - Dade County, which is Florida's largest district (345,000 students) and offers a wide range
of grade configurations up through
grade 8.
We use a school - level measure that has been standardized across the sample
of schools included in our analysis, taking into account the various
grade configurations in different schools.
That statistic alone challenges the use
of grade configuration as the defining factor for the straw man middle school.
In my research I have identified 34 different examples
of charter school innovation, including small size; untenured teachers; contracts with parents; real parent and teacher involvement in school governance; outcome -(rather than input --RRB- based accreditation; service learning fully integrated into the curricula; unusual
grade configurations; split sessions and extended school days and years to accommodate working students; and computer - assisted instruction for at - risk and other frequently absent students.
And because some Florida students attend schools with
grade six through 12 or seven through 12
configurations, he was able to compare the effect
of entering a middle school in
grade six or seven to that
of entering high school in
grade nine.
While some earlier studies questioned the role
of grade configuration in school success and student achievement, including the 2008 National Forum «Policy Statement on Grade Configuration» and a 2010 study by EdSource, «Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better» in California, «the evidence on academic benefits has become much stronger in the past two years,&raqu
configuration in school success and student achievement, including the 2008 National Forum «Policy Statement on
Grade Configuration» and a 2010 study by EdSource, «Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better» in California, «the evidence on academic benefits has become much stronger in the past two years,&raqu
Configuration» and a 2010 study by EdSource, «Gaining Ground in the Middle
Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better» in California, «the evidence on academic benefits has become much stronger in the past two years,» West says.
This suggests that it may be harder to create an effective middle school than an effective K — 8 school, and that part
of the challenge is simply that middle school
grade configurations require an additional school transition.»
Among student subgroups, the study also finds that «
grade configuration has a larger effect on the math scores
of traditionally disadvantaged subgroups than on other students.
«I'm generally sympathetic with this argument, especially to the extent that it points to a set
of practices that middle schools could adopt to address their performance problems given that wholesale changes to
grade configuration are unlikely to occur overnight,» he says.
«I think one
of the most compelling reasons to support the K — 8
grade configuration is the leadership aspect for students,» Bush says.
Research does not show that any particular
grade configuration is best, but it definitely shows that avoiding and minimizing the frequency
of transitions is highly beneficial.
Where a school registered pursuant to this paragraph is in a district in which one or more schools have been designated as a school in improvement, corrective action or restructuring, the commissioner shall determine the accountability status
of the newly registered school based upon his review
of the proposed educational program, including but not limited to such factors as: school mission, school administration and staff,
grade configurations and groupings
of students, zoning patterns, curricula and instruction and facilities.
The key assumption
of our methodology is that there are no unobserved differences between students who in 3rd
grade attended schools that had these different
grade configurations that affect achievement precisely in the year when students enter middle school.
In other words, we are assuming that the negative effect
of a transition is not anticipated by parents and reflected in the choice
of a school with a particular
grade configuration in
grade 3.
Perhaps the most telling research about the impact
of middle - school
grade configuration is a recent study
of New York City middle schools by Jonah Rockoff and Benjamin Lockwood (see «Stuck in the Middle,» Education Next, Fall 2010).
With more than 345,000 students, Miami - Dade is the largest district in Florida and offers a wide range
of grade configurations for students up through
grade 8.
Investigating the transition to high school, we find that students moving to a new high school between
grades 8 and 9 suffer a small drop in achievement
of 0.03 standard deviations in math and 0.04 standard deviations in reading (relative to those in
grade 6 — 12 schools or schools with another
configuration that requires no transition at this point).
Perhaps the most telling research about the impact
of middle - school
grade configuration is a recent study
of New York City middle schools by Jonah Rockoff and Benjamin Lockwood (see «Stuck in the Middle,» research, Fall 2010).
The Columbia Business School researchers studied the impacts
of grade configuration on learning and concluded that «middle schools are not the best way to educate students» in districts like New York City.
The results suggest that the negative effects
of entering a middle school are most pronounced in cities, but they remain sizable even in rural areas, confirming that the negative effects
of configurations that separate the middle - school
grades are by no means limited to urban school districts.
This suggests a final potential interpretation
of our results that is directly related to the choice
of grade configuration: students may benefit from being among the oldest students in a school setting that includes very young students, perhaps because they have greater opportunity to take on leadership roles.
Peter reviews several studies investigating the difference made by
grade configuration on the performance
of students in this age group.
Researchers have questioned the merits
of isolating middle school students in their own
grade configuration for years.
The analysis focused on two structural characteristics —
grade configuration and size — and two demographic characteristics — the percentage
of students qualifying for free and reduced price meals and the proportion
of African - American student enrollment.
Before joining the Deputy Mayor's Office, she worked at District
of Columbia Public Schools as Chief
of Staff to the Chief Operating Officer during which she supported the agency's portfolio planning activities, including school closures,
grade configuration changes, and enrollment projections.
In the May 2012 issue
of NASSP's Principal's Research Review, the longtime topic
of grade configuration is explored.
With a broad selection
of commercial -
grade modular buildings, you can choose from several sizes and
configurations.
One
of the most common requests recently from principals, teachers, parents, and policymakers is for research that will help determine what
grade configuration is best for students in various
grade levels.
This article briefly summarizes some
of the latest research on
grade school
configuration, specifically the benefits
of K - 8
configurations versus middle school...
A school's
grade - level
configuration provides some indication
of its teachers» absence behavior.
This article briefly summarizes some
of the latest research on
grade school
configuration, specifically the benefits
of K - 8
configurations versus middle school
configurations.
The results
of several studies indicated that middle level
grades 6, 7, and 8 obtained higher achievement in K — 8 schools than in schools with middle school
configurations.
This document outlines some
of the numerous changes that have occurred in these «Original 86» schools, including changes in their providers, their
grade configurations, leadership turnover, and the amount
of additional per - pupil funding directed to providers / schools.
Skill areas are essentially different
configurations of learning standards that a student should have already mastered prior to their current
grade.
According to a summary on charter schools from the Florida Legislature's Office
of Program Analysis & Government Accountability: «Due to
grade configurations and small enrollment, 124 out
of 382 charter schools (32 %) did not earn a
grade or school improvement rating as part
of Florida's accountability system during the 2008 - 09 school year.
Whereas, by Resolution No. 2017 - 18: 488, adopted on December 21, 2017, the Board: approved the Superintendent's recommendation to close Kodak Park School No. 41 (currently located at 279 West Ridge Road), effective at the conclusion
of the 2017 - 2018 school year; resolved that the 279 West Ridge Road facility shall continue to be used for educational purposes; authorized and directed the submission
of appropriate documents to request permission from the State Education Department to register a new elementary school commencing in the 2018 - 2019 school year; and directed the Superintendent to submit, recommendations for the new school, including the
grade configuration, location and requirements
of «Naming
of School Facilities Policy 7500»; and
Collegial work groups (e.g.,
grade level teams, school improvement teams), sharing
of expertise, networking
of teachers and principals across schools, cross-role leadership and school improvement teams at school and district levels — all these and many other
configurations of professional educators collaborating with one another on student achievement - focused district reform initiatives are indicative
of a common emphasis on teamwork and professional community as one
of the keys to continuous improvement.