New Report Challenges Middle Level School Leaders to Break Ranks By Thinking and Acting Differently
Posted on: Wednesday, 1 March 2006, 12:01 CST
WASHINGTON, March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report released today by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) entitled Breaking Ranks in the Middle(TM): Strategies for Leading Middle Level School Reform challenges middle level principals to take responsibility for improving the academic outcomes of all of their students and for getting them on track for success in high school and beyond.
The report -- which was developed in collaboration with the Education Alliance at Brown University and a commission of middle level practitioners and experts-details nine cornerstone strategies and 30 specific recommendations for improving student achievement. It includes four full- length profiles and a number of vignettes of schools that put the report's recommendations into action.
Policymakers and the business community alike have pushed for reforms for America's high schools. The attention to and support for high schools is long overdue and greatly needed. Unfortunately, improving student achievement in high schools will meet with little success if the challenges and needs of middle level students are not also taken into account and addressed. One is certainly dependent upon the other. This is particularly evident given what we know about failure and drop-out rates in the 9th grade.
"The early warning signals for high school drop-outs and low-achieving students can be seen at the middle level," said Gerald N. Tirozzi, NASSP Executive Director. "Collaborative leadership, data, personalized learning, and a rigorous curriculum at the middle level will better prepare students for high school and post-secondary success."
The ultimate goal of Breaking Ranks in the Middle is to move from isolated, often profiled, model high-performing schools to an entire system of excellent schools benefiting all students. Breaking Ranks in the Middle proposes strategies that are applicable to all types of schools-big or small, urban, suburban, or rural.
The nine strategies are concentrated in three key areas: (1) collaborative leadership, professional learning communities, and the strategic use of data; (2) personalizing the school environment; and (3) creating rigorous student- centered curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
The first set of strategies and tools focuses on the development of a professional learning community, wherein leadership throughout the institution refocuses its work on what will successfully support every student in their middle level school experience. The second set focuses on the need to provide every student with meaningful adult relationships that can best support every student and lead to the development of personalized learning, where students see their learning as meaningful and relevant. And the third set focuses on building relationships between students and ideas through rigorous and challenging curriculum, instruction, and assessment, ensuring their success both within and beyond middle level school.
Breaking Ranks in the Middle engages principals, teacher leaders, and the entire school community in transforming their middle level school into an academically rigorous, personalized learning environment that is improved through collaborative leadership. "Breaking Ranks in the Middle is a 'hands- on', school-based guidebook for reform," stated Tirozzi. "These are tried, tested, and proven strategies and recommendations for success. While federal, state, and local policymakers debate possible reforms, middle level principals and their leadership teams will be implementing real improvements that lead to higher achievement."
The strategies and recommendations of Breaking Ranks in the Middle support and prepare students for the important transition from middle level to high schools and are closely tied to Breaking Ranks II(TM): Strategies for Leading High School Reform.
EDITORS NOTE: More information on Breaking Ranks in the Middle and Breaking Ranks II can be found on the NASSP Website at http://www.principals.org/. A PDF of the Breaking Ranks in the Middle executive summary as well as the full report can be downloaded with Adobe Acrobat.
See below for full list of schools included in the report.
The National Association of Secondary School Principals-the preeminent organization and the national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals and aspiring school leaders-provides its members the professional resources to serve as visionary leaders. NASSP promotes the intellectual growth, academic achievement, character development, leadership development, and physical well being of youth through its student leadership programs. NASSP sponsors the National Honor Society(TM), the National Junior Honor Society(TM), and the National Association of Student Councils(TM).
Schools Included in Breaking Ranks in the Middle:
Bold and italics denote the four schools with full-length profiles; others are included throughout the report as vignettes showing how they have put the report's recommendations into action.
School Name Principal City State Alvarado Intermediate School Nancy Padilla Rowland Heights CA Bowman Middle School Tonya Horton Plano TX Casey Middle School Ellen Miller-Brown Boulder CO Cohoes Middle School Ronald Babriel Cohoes NY Cordova Middle School Barbara Marshall Phoenix AZ Crabapple Middle School Kimothy Jarrett Roswell GA Culver City Middle School Jerry Kosch Culver City CA Freeport Intermediate School Clara Sale-Davis Freeport TX Hopkins West Junior High School Terry Wolfson Minnetonka MN John F Kennedy Middle School Renato Montano El Centro CA Lehman Community Alternative School Joe Greenberg Ithaca NY Medea Creek Middle School Laural Ford Agoura CA Port Chester Middle & High School Carmen Macchia Port Chester NY Rachel Carson Middle School August Frattali Herndon VA Saunders Middle School Catherine Putre Manassas VA Thayer J Hill Middle School Mike Raczak Naperville IL Upson-Lee Middle School Patsy Dean Thomaston GA
National Association of Secondary School Principals
CONTACT: Michael Carr, +1-703-860-7260, carrm@principals.org, or JohnNori, +1-703-860-7263, norij@principals.org, both of National Association ofSecondary School Principals; or Jeanne Bliss, +1-202-457-8100,jbliss@lipmanhearne.com, for the National Association of Secondary SchoolPrincipals
Web site: http://www.principals.org/
Source: PRNewswire
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