Conclusion
Research and experience show that transitions from elementary to middle and middle to high school can be particularly difficult for young adolescents. The National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform developed criteria for high performance. The School Self-Study and Rating Rubric (DOC; 413KB; 9pp.), is a tool designed by the California Schools to Watch™-Taking Center Stage program to help schools analyze their progress toward excellence based on the National Forum’s criteria. When faithfully implemented, the rubric provides schools with a blueprint for developmentally responsive practices that will help students successfully navigate the academic and social transitions between grade levels.
Although Recommendation 6 has focused on the transitions from elementary to middle schools rather than on changing grades within configurations such as K-8 schools, most of the practices would require only minor adjustments for them to work in helping students make the transition from one grade level to the next. In the final analysis, the problem is not so much about the configuration of the school as it is about serving the needs of young adolescents regardless of the configuration.
Appendices at the end contain a recommendation and various resources on the topic of transitions.
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Grade-Level Configuration and the Connection to Transitions