William Alexander Memorial Lecture

Friday, November 11, 2011 2:00 p.m.

Important Work Ahead: Sustaining Our Vision and Momentum
Most middle grades educators—teachers, counselors, principals, and other school personnel—work tirelessly to support the educational needs of young adolescents in their schools. These educators are well positioned to know and respond to the unique learning needs of students in their classrooms and schools. However, in recent times, many educators feel "caught in the middle" between the increasing demands of accountability measures and their central mission of providing academically-rich and appropriate learning experiences for all learners. These educators express frustrations and concerns about reductions in programs and practices that support young adolescents yet feel disempowered to effect positive change. Because this tension warrants attention, it is time to examine proactive approaches for educators to (a) tap their own professional knowledge; (b) invite multiple perspectives; and (c) advance a shared, context-specific vision of middle grades education. Together teachers, principals, parents, and other stakeholders can engage in the important work to sustain vision and momentum in middle grades education.

To get started, this critical work requires

• Looking back, acknowledging current issues, and envisioning the future.
• Seeking and listening to multiple voices to reach shared goals.
• Examining, embracing, and retaining innovations that work.
• Exchanging ideas and sharing publicly what works in middle grades classrooms and schools.

Micki M. Caskey is a professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the Graduate School of Education at Portland State University. She holds a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction with a specialization in interdisciplinary education from the University of South Florida. She draws on more than 20 years of teaching in both middle and high schools in inner city schools. Her areas of specialization include content area literacy, learning strategies and content enhancements, middle grades education, teacher education, and action research. She is chair of the Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) Research Advisory Board; editor of Research in Middle Level Education Online, an international peer-reviewed journal; and immediate past chair of the Middle Level Education Research—a Special Interest Group of the American Educational Research Association (AERA). Additionally, she is a Strategic Instruction Model (SIM) professional developer for the Center for Research on Learning (University of Kansas), and board member for the Oregon Middle Level Consortium of Teacher Educators and Oregon Association of Teacher Educators. Her publication record includes eight books, six chapters, four encyclopedia entries, and numerous journal articles. Caskey's awards include the Distinguished Research in Teacher Education Award (2004) from the Association of Teacher Educators; the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning with Technology Awards (1999, 2002) from Portland State University; a Fellowship to the American Memory Program at the Library of Congress (1999); and Teacher of the Year (1996) in the Hillsborough County School District.