Synopses & Reviews
This fresh, reader-friendly text presents a comprehensive introduction to the children, the choices, and the challenges of teaching middle school. Writing in the first person, the author, an experienced middle school teacher, examines the full range of middle school topics, from the development and diversity of middle school learners, to the structures, curriculum, and environment of the school itself.
Engaging vignettes and photos of teachers and students bring topics to life, while student work samples, case studies, and articles on MyEducationLab link to topics within each chapter. Boxed NMSA performance standards relate to each chapter's content and videos, and Professional Practice features in all chapters involve scenarios from the lives of teachers and students, followed by multiple choice and constructed response opportunities that mirror Praxis II exams. Introduction to Middle School offers a comprehensive body of knowledge that emphasizes academic rigor while speaking to pre-service teachers in a voice that invites new teachers into this field.
New to This Edition
- NEW! Chapter 5 focuses on societal context of middle level education with emphasis on the digital, instant-messaging realities of young adolescents' lives; verbal, physical, and cyber bullying; socioeconomic implications and challenges; and health issues such as obesity and substance abuse, helping teacher candidates conceptualize the world of young adolescents through exploration of current realities and dilemmas affecting both students and middle level education.
- NEW! Diversity is addressed in multiple ways in every chapter, with an icon to call attention to the issues, helping teacher candidates become increasingly aware of the many ways diversity is manifested among young adolescents.
- NEW! MyEducationLab referenced in the text includes videos, student work samples, simulations, case studies, and articles linked to topics within each chapter, providing teacher candidates with additional ways to interact with text topics.
- NEW! Insights and advice from practicing teachers are featured throughout the text as nine focus teachers weigh in on topics as they occur in the chapters, helping teacher candidates better understand the theory and practices in the text as a result of reading personal experiences in the voices of the focus teachers.
Synopsis
This fresh, reader-friendly text presents a comprehensive introduction to the children, the choices, and the challenges of teaching middle school. Writing in the first person, the author, an experienced middle school teacher, examines the full range of middle school topics, from the development and diversity of middle school learners, to the structures, curriculum, and environment of the school itself.
Engaging vignettes and photos of teachers and students bring topics to life, while student work samples, case studies, and articles on MyEducationLab link to topics within each chapter. Boxed NMSA performance standards relate to each chapter's content and videos, and Professional Practice features in all chapters involve scenarios from the lives of teachers and students, followed by multiple choice and constructed response opportunities that mirror Praxis II exams. Introduction to Middle School offers a comprehensive body of knowledge that emphasizes academic rigor while speaking to pre-service teachers in a voice that invites new teachers into this field.
About the Author
Sara Davis Powell is a teacher–from the middle school classroom to teacher preparation as a professor at Belmont Abbey College. She is a young adolescent advocate who writes about middle level teacher preparation, emphasizing a balance of theory and developmentally responsive and academically rigorous practice. Powell's An Introduction to Education: Choosing Your Teaching Path was published by Pearson in 2008 and is the textbook for initial education courses in colleges across the country. She is actively involved in local classrooms and the middle school community through professional development, supervising clinical interns, and conducting research and writing about middle level issues. She is also a frequent speaker at regional and national conferences, where her enthusiasm for middle level education has proven contagious.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: What is a Middle School?
Chapter 2: Development of Middle Level Learners
Chapter 3: Diversity Among Middle Level Students
Chapter 4: Middle Level Teachers
Chapter 5: The Societal Context of Middle Level Education
Chapter 6: Structures of Middle level Education
Chapter 7: Middle Level Curriculum
Chapter 8: Middle Level Instruction
Chapter 9: Assessment for Middle Level Learners
Chapter 10: Planning for Teaching and Learning
Chapter 11: Maintaining a Positive, Productive Learning Environment
Chapter 12: They Are All Our Children
Glossary
References
Name index
Subject Index