GED Middle Grades Organization!

In an effort to broaden my understanding of what it means to be a teacher and to enhance my ability as a future educator I am taking a Middle Grades Organization course in addition to my focus in Secondary Education. In this course, I will learn about how Middle School students learn best and in what ways teaching young adolescents varies from teaching high school students.

One critical component of Middle School learning is "Teaming". Reports show that young adolescents who work in teams over time are more likely to succeed than students who do not. Part of the reason for this is that teams/advisories provide students with the support they need through Middle School. When others are relying on them to do their part they are more likely to follow through. This teaches students the value of responsibility and communication. The benefit of teaming is that even when students come across challenges in groups, they must learn to overcome them and grow with one another. One interesting component of teaming that catches my attention is its usefulness in fostering a creative and cooperative enviroment not only for students but for teachers as well. I found it interestug that teachers who collaborate intersectionally are found to be more effective than teachers who work independently. In the future I would like to learn more about how teaming enhances student performance, but an educators's ability as well.

Throughout the course, I will be working in a group with two of my peers to produce a website featuring our Advisory team. This team is tasked with creating an environment which fosters learning and personal growth. Thus far, we have created the page for our team, a concise mission statement and a team name (Team Arrow). In the following weeks we will progressively work to update our website and build community within the group. The idea of having an advisory team makes a lot of sense, especially at the Middle School level, however I have a lot to learn. Unlike my teammates I did not attend a traditional Middle School. Rather, I attended a High School with grades 7-12. There, we did not have teams nor advisory programs. In this way I bring to the table a fresh and unbiased perspective, however I lack experience in a classroom setting. Nonetheless, based on class readings and dicussions I am beginning to grasp what it means to create a strong advisory program. The program needs to support students, families, and communities in a way that they can succeed and feel safe to ask for help. One team described their advisory experience in class and one part stuck out to me. They said, "In Middle School we had teachers (advisors) who had a policy where if their doors where open, then you knew you could go in and talk with them or ask for help." After hearning this I understood what an advisory program would look like in practice. I look forward to incorporating these ideas into our team website.