A Design for Improving Middle Grades Education

Chapter two is built around the idea of the student as a well balanced, “whole” person. The ideas behind this concept indicate that the student is intellectually reflective, working toward a successful future, and a good, caring, ethical and healthy person. In order to successfully build a curriculum for our future students, we must first view them in this light and recognize that they are ever capable of being pushed and achieving more. With this in mind, we must also nurture this person in order to ensure that they maintain positive health and ethics.

Synthesis: I found the recommendations to be especially useful in how best to plan for middle level students. By recognizing that students require information relevant to personal experiences, I as a teacher will be capable of building lessons intended for middle school students rather than removed information. In using standards that will push students to achieve more, students will be capable of building upon prior knowledge while at the same time recognizing that they are capable of achieving more than they might have initially thought possible. I really enjoy the idea of continuing education for teachers as this pushes teachers to recognize new teaching strategies and to be constantly learning with students. By constantly remembering these factors, I will be able to reach my students on a deeper level and build upon the knowledge they have learned in past years.