Current thinking among developmental psychologists and educators is that children in the middle school grades face intense psychological demands due to major physical, social, emotional, and cognitive changes, and that these changes call for a particular type of school environment. Describe the changes that middle school students typically experience and the type of educational environment that
would best meet their needs.
What will be an ideal response?
Middle school students are in early adolescence and are undergoing major physical changes related to puberty, social changes related to the desire to conform to the norms of a peer group, emotional changes related to the hormonal changes of puberty and the continued influence of egocentric thought, and cognitive changes related to the refinement of concrete operational schemes and the beginnings of formal operational schemes.
Because early adolescence is characterized by an increased need for autonomy, an acute
self-consciousness, the developing awareness of others' feelings and the importance of peer acceptance, concerns about self-image, and the capacity for abstract thought, school environments should stress the following characteristics: students should be allowed to
make decisions about such things as classroom rules, where they sit, and time spent on various tasks. Teachers should strive to establish a friendly, supportive, and caring relationship with students; stress small-group and individualized instruction and deemphasize whole-class instruction and ability grouping; use predetermined standards for
grades rather than grading on a curve; and emphasize discussion and group problem-solving activities rather than copying information from textbooks or filling out worksheets.
You might also like to view...
By early adolescence, teens listen to music (radio, CDs, music, videos) for _________ hours per day
What will be an ideal response?
The ruling of the highest court in one jurisdiction (i.e., Fourth Circuit) takes
precedence over a conflicting ruling from the highest court in another jurisdiction (i.e., Fifth Circuit). Indicate whether the statement is true(T) or false(F).
Three of the following strategies are consistent with the textbook's discussion of bullying. Which one is not consistent?
a. Offer emotional support to the victims of bullies, and help them make friends with students who might protect them against future bullying. b. Help students get a good understanding of what bullying is, pointing out that it can involve either physical or psychological harm. c. Ignore minor incidents of bullying if the victims are immature and need some "toughening up." d. Create a system through which students can anonymously report incidents of bullying they see in the halls, on the playground, and elsewhere.
Providing varied concrete examples and opportunities to work through them are core instructional events for
a. cognitive strategies. b. concept learning. c. motor skills. d. verbal information.