Empowerment through rejection: challenging divisions between traditional, authentic and critical writing pedagogy

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meghan E. Barnes ◽  
Heather Coffey
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Writing Instruction ◽  
English Language ◽  
Community Change ◽  
School Students ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Authentic Writing ◽  
Survey Responses

Purpose The purpose of this study is to inquire into the effectiveness of authentic writing instruction embedded in a critical service-learning project in a middle school English Language Arts curriculum. Design/methodology/approach This paper analyzes middle school students’ survey responses before and after their participation in a critical service-learning project designed to engage students in authentic writing. Specifically, the paper considers students’ perspectives of community and writing as a result of their participation in the project. Findings Participants’ perspectives fell into three categories: audience influence, empowerment or personal knowledge to act and confidence in ideas. Originality/value These perspectives suggest a deviation from common findings regarding the benefits of authentic writing instruction, as the presence of an audience in this study often hindered student confidence in their abilities as writers and community change agents. Authors draw from the findings to offer recommendations to support teachers in effectively incorporating authentic writing practices and audiences into their instruction.

Food, nutrient, and energy waste among school students

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (8) ◽  
pp. 1807-1831 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Teresa Kowalewska ◽  
Anna Kołłajtis-Dołowy
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Young People ◽  
Educational Intervention ◽  
Food Waste ◽  
Sustainable Consumption ◽  
Household Waste ◽  
School Students ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Before And After

Purpose According to a study by European Commission, 88m tons of food waste are generated per year, of which 46.5m tons are wasted by households. Households still remain the main source of food waste (53 percent). The purpose of this paper is to estimate households’ food waste and wastage-related losses of energy and nutrients among middle school students as well as assess educational intervention regarding food waste prevention. Design/methodology/approach The study included 555 students from 11 schools in Poland. The study was conducted using the survey questionnaire and the three-day record of food waste. The interventional group filled a questionnaire before and after of education as well as after three months of intervention. Findings Students waste 23 g of food per day. The most wasted products are: potatoes, bread, fruits and vegetable as well as meet and ham. Energy losses from leftovers are less than 1–10 percent. Losses of nutritional value along with wastages were the highest for vitamin C, but also for dietary fiber, potassium and folate. Food waste education was nearly twice as strong in study group with films intervention, than those who received only a leaflet for parents. Research limitations/implications Middle school students are responsible for households’ food waste and contribute to energy and nutrition losses. Educational intervention is more effective, while using multimedia methods and need to be continued. Practical implications The paper is a scientific study and addressed to the scientific audience. However, due to the problem of households’ food waste, general public could be also interested. Social implications Food waste is an element of waste management. Studying the scale of food waste and waste related behavior can help to better understand causes of food waste. The search for ways to limit food waste, through education address to young people, can be an effective method of prevention of waste. The UN has established 17 new development goals for the years 2015–2030 (United Nations, 2015). One of them (Goal 12) is focused on ensuring sustainable consumption and production. It means halving food waste at the retail and consumer levels and food losses at the production and post-harvest stages by 2030. Originality/value There are few publications available about food waste including energy and nutrients waste. This study shows the scale of household waste, the quantity and type of wasted products and causes of disposal. Also, the way of handling with food waste at homes was examined. It is also important to draw attention to the responsibility of young people in wasting food, which was examined in the paper.

Cultivating the collective: exploring the American dream with sixth graders

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-45
Author(s):  
Sarah Elizabeth Montgomery ◽  
Zak K. Montgomery ◽  
Sarah Vander Zanden ◽  
Ashley Jorgensen ◽  
Mirsa Rudic
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
American Dream ◽  
Sixth Grade ◽  
Sixth Graders ◽  
School Students ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Arts And Humanities

Purpose The concept of an American Dream was interrogated during a service-learning partnership between university students and a multilingual, racially diverse class of sixth graders. The one-on-one service-learning partnerships were at the heart of the semester-long project and sought horizontalidad, or non-authoritarian democratic communication and shared knowledge creation. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach This project leveraged the arts and humanities within the context of social studies education to promote youth civic engagement. This project used Photovoice methodology in which all participants took photos and wrote about their American Dream. Participants then shared their photography and writing at three public gallery events in the community in an effort to educate others about their perspectives, experiences, and hopes regarding the American Dream. Findings Findings from the reciprocally minded partnership centered on the sixth-grade students taking a collective approach to the American Dream. Specifically, they noted their commitment to their families and desire to support others, with some sixth graders even sharing a commitment to promoting social justice. Some participants demonstrated a “we consciousness,” or a collective approach to social justice. Originality/value The study provides insights into how educators can engage middle school students in democratic practice as active citizens in a service-learning partnership. Through a service-learning themed project about the American Dream, middle school students were able to share their voices and experiences with the larger community via a project rooted in horizontalidad.

Successful leadership in a rural, high-poverty school: the case of County Line Middle School

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 422-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans W. Klar ◽  
Curtis A. Brewer
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Leadership Strategies ◽  
High Poverty ◽  
Content Type ◽  
School Principalship ◽  
Successful School

Purpose – In this paper, the authors present a case study of successful school leadership at County Line Middle School. The purpose of the paper is to identify how particular leadership practices and beliefs were adapted to increase student achievement in this rural, high-poverty school in the southeastern USA. Design/methodology/approach – After purposefully selecting this school, the authors adapted interview protocols, questionnaires, and analysis frameworks from the International Successful School Principalship Project to develop a multi-perspective case study of principal leadership practices at the school. Findings – The findings illustrate the practices which led to students at this school, previously the lowest-performing in the district, achieving significantly higher on state standardized tests, getting along “like a family,” and regularly participating in service learning activities and charity events. A particularly interesting finding was how the principal confronted the school's negative self-image and adapted common leadership practices to implement a school-wide reform that suited its unique context. Research limitations/implications – While the findings of the study explicate the specific ways the principal adapted leadership strategies to enhance student learning, this study also highlights the need to understand how principals become familiar with their community's needs, cultures, norms, and values, and exercise leadership in accordance with them. Practical implications – The case offers an example of the need for context-responsive leadership in schools. In particular, it illustrates how this principal enacted leadership strategies that successfully negotiated what Woods (2006) referred to as the changing politics of the rural. To realize this success, the principal utilized his understanding of this low income, rural community to guide his leadership practices. Critically, part of this understanding included the ways the community was connected to and isolated from dominant sub-urban and urban societies, and how to build enthusiasm and capacity through appeals to local values. Originality/value – While it is widely acknowledged that school leaders need to consider their school and community contexts when making leadership decisions, less research has focussed on understanding how this can be achieved. This case provides rich examples of how this was accomplished in a rural, high-poverty middle school.

Comparing Middle School Students’ Responses to Narrative Versus Expository Texts on Situational and Individual Interest

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Durik ◽  
◽  
Steven McGee ◽  
Edward Hansen ◽  
Jennifer Duck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Situational Interest ◽  
Expository Texts ◽  
Individual Interest ◽  
School Students ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Web Based Learning ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Text Genre

This project examined the effects of text genre on both situational and individual interest. Middle school students completed a three-session web-based learning module in the domain of ecology wherein they were randomly assigned to either narrative or expository readings that were matched on key idea units and other variables. Students reported individual interest in ecology on the day before and after their exposure to the module. Affective and cognitive situational interest was measured after the readings on each day of the module. The results showed that expository readings were perceived as more helpful for learning than were narrative readings, but this varied somewhat by initial individual interest. Although the narrative versions did not facilitate situational interest, there was a small effect on individual interest suggesting that learners exposed to narrative readings came to perceive the domain of ecology as a more meaningful discipline than did those exposed to expository readings.

Counselor Confirmation of Middle School Student Self-Reports of Bullying Victimization

2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 2156759X1101400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dewey Cornell ◽  
Sharmila B. Mehta
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
School Counselors ◽  
Middle School Student ◽  
Self Report ◽  
School Students ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Peer Nomination ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
Victims Of Bullying

School counselors frequently use self-report surveys to assess bullying despite little research on their accuracy. In this study, counselor follow-up interviews found that only 24 (56%) of 43 middle school students who self-identified as victims of bullying could be confirmed as actual victims. Other students described peer conflicts that did not constitute bullying, mis-marked the survey, or reported previous bullying. Counselor judgments were supported by peer-nomination data and other survey responses indicative of victimization.

The i2Flex Transformation of a Commemorative Event to a Service-Learning Experience

2021 ◽  
pp. 589-615
Author(s):  
Christina Bakoyannis ◽  
Sevasti Koniossis
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
School Setting ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
School Students ◽  
Advisory Program ◽  
Teachers And Students

The American Community Schools (ACS) Athens Middle School was able to transform a one-day commemorative event known as United Nations Day into long-term service-learning using i2Flex principles and methodologies. The i2Flex blended learning component enabled teachers and students to overcome time limitations and empowered students to take ownership of their service. Utilizing i2Flex strategies can prove meaningful for long term student character development, innovation, and critical thinking skills required in the 21st century. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs or Global Goals) guided the development of the Moodle course shell and a lasting service-learning experience for middle school students. The authors also discuss how the transformation of United Nations Day into authentic service-learning shaped an advisory program in the middle school and what implications it can further have in a school setting.

scholarly journals The Prevalence of Rape Myths among Middle School Students across Gender and Socioeconomic Background

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 42-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Dyehouse ◽  
Mary Pilat
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Rape Myths ◽  
Rape Myth Acceptance ◽  
Rape Myth ◽  
Socioeconomic Background ◽  
School Students ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Middle School Youth ◽  
School Youth ◽  
Myth Acceptance

A study designed to investigate the level and type of rape myths that are endorsed among middle school youth in terms of gender and socioeconomic background is reported in this paper. Participants were 582 seventh and eighth grade students who took part in Project Equality, a rape and sexual assault prevention curriculum that took place during eight, one and a half-hour sessions. The modified Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale was administered to students before and after Project Equality. Results indicate that males endorse higher levels of rape myth acceptance, both before and after the intervention, although the number of endorsed myths decreased. Rape myth endorsement decreased following the intervention among participants of differing socioeconomic backgrounds. Males and females showed lower levels of rape myth acceptance following the intervention. Implications include finding more effective ways to target male youth and that Project Equality works to lower rape myths among middle school youth. 

Using Service Learning to Achieve Middle School Comprehensive Guidance Program Goals

2005 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 2156759X0500900
Author(s):  
Kathryn A. Stott ◽  
Aaron P. Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Character Education ◽  
Career Interests ◽  
School Students ◽  
Learning Skills ◽  
Comprehensive Guidance ◽  
Personal Awareness ◽  
Guidance Program ◽  
Skills Learning

Service-learning classes taught by professional middle school counselors and teachers can help middle school students meet comprehensive guidance program goals related to academic/learning development, life/career development, personal/social development, and multicultural/global citizenship. An example is provided of a service-learning class where middle school students received comprehensive guidance curriculum instruction and then taught a similar curriculum to elementary school students. Results from a phenomenological evaluation describe yielded five major themes pertinent to middle school student development and demonstrate comprehensive guidance program goal achievement: personal awareness, social skills, learning skills, career interests and character education. The themes were personal awareness, social skills, learning skills, career interests, and character education.

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