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Help middle schoolers engage in the classroom before it's too late!The middle school years mark a critical point in a child's educational journey. For many educators, these years are the last chance to put in place strong, positive learning patterns.U-Turn Teaching is founded on Rich Allen's “Green Light” education strategies, in which every activity is designed to proactively support learning. This book builds on what researchers have discovered about how the adolescent brain learns best, and shows how those discoveries directly relate to effective classroom teaching. Now you can engage all students, even unmotivated ones, and help them make a U-turn by applying these four principles of brain-based learning: Build and maintain trust; Create a collaborative community; Take a TEAMing approach; Prime the positive environmentU-Turn Teaching demonstrates how to realistically accomplish these four principles in your classroom. When educators are able to embed positive, efficient, and effective patterns of learning in the middle years, students are far more likely to succeed in high school and beyond!

Gender difference in the lunches brought from home to school and the amount consumed by elementary and intermediate school students were examined using data collected from 12 schools in Texas. The amount and nutritional quality of food items brought and consumed was evaluated, by comparing the results to the 2012 school meal standards, and Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs). Almost all lunches brought from home contained grain and meat/meat alternatives, and the amount brought and consumed exceeded the NSLP standards. The majority of students did not bring fruits, vegetables, and whole grain foods, but those who brought consumed most of what they brought. Among elementary school students, only 9% of boys and 14% of girls brought vegetables and the amount brought and consumed did not meet the standards. Although carbohydrate and protein consumption were adequate for boys and girls, the intakes of micronutrients and fiber did not meet the requirements across both genders at both school levels. Overall, lunches brought from home were not well balanced and did not meet NSLP standards and DRIs. It is imperative to identify strategies to improve the nutritional quality of lunches brought from home considering gender difference in food choice and educating parents and children on what is a healthy well-balanced lunch.

As 21st century educators grapple with new and unprecedented challenges, schools and districts require a model of change leadership that responds to shifting environmental realities. Deep Change Leadership aims to give leaders pragmatic ways to spark change in education. Author Douglas Reeves offers up a model that departs from traditionally held beliefs and instead embraces engagement, inquiry, and focused action. Use this resource to set in motion effective change initiatives: * Explore the principal impediments to effective change leadership, including fragmentation and the myth of universal buy-in. * Learn the means by which you can gauge your and your school's or district's readiness for change. * Study the characteristics of deep change leadership, which involves deciding what does not change, supplementing passion with purpose, and narrowing your focus. * Discover how to make sound course corrections and avoid mistakes in change leadership. * Understand real results in terms of both outcomes and causes. Contents: Acknowledgments Table of Contents About the Author Introduction Part 1: The Change Imperative Chapter 1: Realizing the Need for a New Model of Change Chapter 2: Understanding the Pain Inherent in Change Chapter 3: Exposing the Myth of Buy-In Chapter 4: Exploring Change Expectance and Readiness Part 2: The New Model of Change Leadership Deciding What Does Not Change Combining Passion and Purpose Reining In Your Focus Part 3: The Path Ahead Chapter 8: Making Course Corrections Chapter 9: Anticipating Mistakes in Change Leadership Chapter 10: Identifying Real Results Chapter 11: Building a Team of Change Leaders Epilogue: Iceberg Ahead References and Resources Index

Two developments in teacher expectation research formed the basis for the current study. First, researchers have begun investigating the self-fulfilling prophecy effects of teacher expectations on a variety of psycho-social outcomes in addition to the effects on academic achievement. Second, researchers have started to realize that some groups of students appeared to be more vulnerable or susceptible to teacher expectations. The current study aimed to investigate whether students’ gender and minority background were moderators of teacher expectation effects for both academic outcomes and self-concept and subjective task value in the mathematics domain. The study is based on a sample of 1663 students (Grades 6 and 7) in 42 classes from three intermediate schools in New Zealand. Multilevel modeling was applied using MLwiN software. First, after controlling for students’ beginning-of-year mathematics achievement, teacher expectations were higher for Asian and lower for Māori, compared with New Zealand European students. Expectations within the domain of mathematics, however, were higher for girls than for boys. Second, teachers’ beginning-year expectations were predictive of achievement and self-concept of students at end-of-year, after controlling for beginning-of-year achievement and self-concept. Teachers’ expectations were, however, not predictive of end-of-year intrinsic and utility value. Third, we did not find evidence for moderation effects of students’ gender and minority background. These findings imply that despite the roughly similar magnitude of teacher expectation effects for various student groups, teacher expectations may contribute to gaps in students’ achievement and self-concept because of differential expectations at the beginning of the year.

A comprehensive introduction to middle school teaching, this textbook focuses explicitly on instructional strategies that encourage adolescents to become active participants in their own learning within a world of accountability and standardized testing. The author, an experienced middle school teacher and teacher educator, takes a constructivist approach to teaching that considers the whole child, including the emotional, psychological, social, and cultural variables uniquely associated with adolescence. The text examines the full range of middle school topics, from the development and diversity of middle school learners, to the structures, curriculum, and management of the classroom itself. Special features include: \"Empowering Middle School Students to Take Ownership of their Learning,\" \"Teaching Scenario,\" \"Key Points,\" and \"Creating an Anti-Oppressive Atmosphere in Your Classroom\" textboxes help teachers gain a clearer understanding of content presented and encourage them to become reflective practitioners. Callouts throughout explicitly link chapter content to NMSA standards. Discussion of the unique challenges of actively engaging bilingual students, special needs students, and students exhibiting antisocial behavior. Accounts about middle school students illustrate the ways adolescents think about school and learning. A chapter that focuses on ways teachers can apply the general teaching strategies to specific subject areas. Sample Lesson Plans, Focus Questions, Chapter Summaries, Journal Entries, and Student Activities/Assignments are included throughout to encourage readers to actively participate with the text. 1. Rationalizing the Middle School Concept 2. Theoretical Frameworks 3. Motivational Theories and Early Adolescence 4. Effective Classroom Management 5. What is Antisocial Behavior? 6. Designing and Enacting the Curriculum 7. Using Multicultural Education to Enhance Student Engagement in Learning 8. Assessing Student Learning 9. Instructional Strategies for Developing Higher-Level Thinking 10. Enhancing Student Engagement in the Content Areas 11. Parental and Community Involvement Martha Casas is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Texas at El Paso. \" Enhancing Student Learning in Middle School is a remarkably insightful and unique text for both aspiring and practicing middle grades teachers. Casas offers realistic, relevant, and well-grounded approaches for promoting engagement and addressing the academic and affective needs of young adolescents. It is a must read for teachers who wish to improve their teaching and student learning.\" --Micki M. Caskey, Professor, Middle Grades Education, Portland State University

Despite schools' recognised role in mitigating childhood overweight, many schools fail to implement physical activity or nutrition strategies. The current study explored the enablers and barriers to implementing obesity prevention strategies in Jeddah, KSA. This research is based on 14 semi-structured interviews with intermediate school principals and sports teachers to gain insight into their perception of barriers and enablers to implementing obesity prevention strategies. Themes were deductively generated from the data. Participants estimated the prevalence of overweight and obesity among their students to be between 3 and 15% with an increasing trend, particularly among female students. Participants identified five categories of barriers to implementation of obesity prevention intervention: curriculum; schools strategies promoting healthy weight; lack of resources; student's lifstyle; and a lack of teachers in nutrition and sports. School regulations, staff and sufficient resources were the most frequently reported enablers. Participants also identified food services, awareness, and partnerships as barriers and enablers. There is a need for better infrastructure and financial support for schools and professional development opportunities for teachers from the Saudi Ministry of Education. The Ministry also needs to support the development of multilevel health promotion strategies at school and home and reach out to the broader community.

We studied the role of the valence of female teachers’ perceptions in predicting various student outcomes. Using a prospective design, at the beginning of Grade 5 (T1), we assessed evaluations by 43 female teachers of either mathematics or German, belonging to 22 secondary schools in Germany. We combined a qualitative measurement by using an open-ended question, with a quantitative data analysis. At T1 and T2 (4 months later), the assigned students ( N  = 635) reported their subject-specific achievement, learning and performance goals, and quality of relationship to their teacher. Multilevel analyses revealed that positive teacher perceptions increased future student achievement, while negative teacher perceptions reduced immediate and future learning and performance goals. Further, positive teacher perceptions explained differences in student outcomes between classes, whereas negative teacher perceptions explained differences in student outcomes between schools.

In this compelling look at second-generation Indian Americans, Khyati Y. Joshi draws on case studies and interviews with forty-one second-generation Indian Americans, analyzing their experiences involving religion, race, and ethnicity from elementary school to adulthood. As she maps the crossroads they encounter as they navigate between their homes and the wider American milieu, Joshi shows how their identities have developed differently from their parents' and their non-Indian peers' and how religion often exerted a dramatic effect.The experiences of Joshi's research participants reveal how race and religion interact, intersect, and affect each other in a society where Christianity and whiteness are the norm. Joshi shows how religion is racialized for Indian Americans and offers important insights in the wake of 9/11 and the backlash against Americans who look Middle Eastern and South Asian. Through her candid insights into the internal conflicts contemporary Indian Americans face and the religious and racial discrimination they encounter, Joshi provides a timely window into the ways that race, religion, and ethnicity interact in day-to-day life.

6-12 teachers will discover how to integrate the tech requirements found within today's academic standards into their everyday curriculum. Perhaps your district provides current technology development for staff on a regular basis and has instructional coaches to help teachers infuse technology into their curriculum to meet various academic standards. But in reality, most districts don't have this kind of support. In this book (the second in a two-book series), you'll learn how to shift your instructional practice and leverage technology to meet today's curriculum education standards for grades 6-12. This book doesn't cover every 6-12 national standard, but identifies the standards with a technology component and provides resources and lessons to help you teach those standards effectively. This book includes: * Classroom-tested lesson ideas in English language arts, math, science and social studies mapped to ISTE and tech-related standards to support college- and career-readiness. * Lists of technology-embedded college- and career-readiness standards for each grade level, along with practical ideas and up-to-date resources (apps, software and websites) that can be used in meeting these standards. * Suggestions for addressing roadblocks to incorporating technology in the classroom. * Ways to incorporate staff development and parental support at the school level. * Access to a companion website with information on the tools referenced in the text. With the implementation of these strategies, you'll help your students become self-directed and critical readers, writers and thinkers so they're better prepared for the future! Audience: 6-12 educators, curriculum specialists, tech coordinators