This article describes how three universities approach middle level teacher preparation through partnerships and clinical experiences. The authors share the structures of their programs and the role of their partnerships in the clinical preparation of their candidates. They also discuss the challenges and opportunities presented by…

This article describes the middle grades teacher preparation program at Augusta State University in Georgia. It describes the negotiation between the middle school concept and the standardized testing culture of the local schools as the faculty redesigned the undergraduate middle grades program to adequately address both. Ways in which new…

This article reports findings from a survey of middle level teacher educators to determine their views of online teacher education. The questions were grounded in the literature about effective middle level education and the important aspects of providing teacher preparation unique to those seeking to teach young adolescent learners. The survey…

Since 1979, the American Samoa Department of Education and the University of Hawai'i have partnered to provide education and training for American Samoan teachers. Beginning in 2009, these efforts have focused on teachers in the middle grades. This article describes the context, program structure, and implementation of a graduate degree program in…

This article describes the experiences of one Minnesota middle school that implemented a year-long integrated STEM program with the cooperation of graduate student fellows from a local university. The authors, two of whom were among the graduate students involved in the project, describe their impressions of the program, share some lessons they…

The authors describe a one-on-one online mentoring project that matched preservice teachers with English language learners to help them improve their writing skills. Online writing became a practical, engaging forum for the preservice teachers to discuss language learning and teaching and to learn how to effectively teach writing to ELL students.…

The authors describe the development and implementation of the Career Institute, a program designed to provide opportunities for young adolescents to explore their interests and abilities in relation to their current educational experiences and future college and career goals. They share details about how the school-wide career development program…

Members of the educational community, especially teachers and students, need to understand the roles of diversity, prejudice, and privilege in the educational community, but "an understanding of a multicultural perspective must begin with self-inquiry." In addition to self-inquiry, brain-based research validates that long-term understanding comes…

In this globalized world, individuals and countries that invest heavily in education increasingly benefit socially and economically from that choice. Among the 30 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries with the largest expansion of college education over the last decades, most still see rising earnings differentials…

Conventional wisdom dictates that learning comes in incremental bits and gradually builds up from the bottom. But conventional wisdom should always be questioned. This article describes what a cohort of 17 preservice middle grades teachers encountered as they learned to "stroke the crawl" in a curriculum class that was to provide an unconventional…

The turn of the century brought a profound change in the accreditation of teacher preparation programs. This shift--from curriculum-based reviews to standards-based reviews--took place in the context of the accountability movement of the late 20th century. The 21st century ushered in what many refer to as "a culture of evidence." From P-12 to…

Over the past 15 years, Australia has seen the growth of separate middle schools for lower secondary school students and in some cases, upper primary school students. For example, every new government high school built in the state since 1995 has taken the form of a middle school for young adolescents and a separate senior campus for young adults.…

Take 50 university education students who may not be quite sure they want to be teachers. Pour them all into a charter bus, and drive them five hours to a remote Texas Hill Country location. Mix in equal parts of enthusiasm and dedication, well-planned interdisciplinary curriculum, and face-to-face interaction with middle level students. Let…

In this article, the author first reviews a range of concerns about middle schooling in America, most of which are shown to have salience in Australia, to provide a context for a more detailed examination of integrated curriculum as a significant issue in contemporary middle schooling. Two examples of integrated curriculum in the Australian…

This article presents the experience of Marshall University Graduate College in using online middle level teacher preparation. The case suggests that such a format provides opportunities for efficient, accessible, and effective training for middle level teachers. Online training does not suggest a different philosophy to that of the traditional…