RESEARCH SUMMARIES

Research Summaries are abbreviated reviews of professional literature that inform middle level education policy and practice and provide basic information about the education of young adolescents for parents and community members. The Research Advisory Committee of AMLE is currently seeking submissions.

View the submission guidelines

  • Equity, Access, and Inclusiveness: Supporting Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Young Adolescents in the Mainstreamed Middle School Classroom
  • STEM in the Middle Grades
  • Student Agency
  • Teaching Historical Literacy in the Middle Grades
  • Transitioning Young Adolescents from Elementary to Middle School
  • Understanding and Addressing the Challenges of Teaching Middle Grades Mathematics Conceptually
  • Developmental Characteristics of Young Adolescents
View Archived Research Summaries

Equity in Mathematics: Helping Every Young Adolescent Access the Content

Research Summary

Access and equity for all in mathematics is not a new idea (Trentacosta & Kenney, 1997). When focusing on mathematics, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics has made it clear and imperative in Principles to Actionsthat we commit to access and equity for all (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM], 2014).

STEM in the Middle Grades

Math
Research Summary
Science

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education continues to emphasize the teaching of skills that are relevant to today’s information driven economy (Jamali, Nurulazam Md Zain, Samsudin & Ale Ebrahim, 2017).

Student Agency

Democratic Classroom
Research Summary
Student Engagement
Student Motivation

A typical middle school classroom includes young adolescents with a range of skills, interests, abilities, and personalities. One student may relate any topic of study to a favorite sport or video game. Another stretches her digital skills with e

Teaching Historical Literacy in the Middle Grades

Literacy
Reading
Research Summary
Social Studies

As students enter the middle grades, they often encounter curricula that grow more challenging each year. This is especially the case in social studies when students experience primary documents and complex texts, sometimes with limited background knowledge.

Transitioning Young Adolescents from Elementary to Middle School

Research Summary
Transition to Middle School

Middle school can be an exciting and terrifying time for students transitioning from elementary to middle school. By definition, transition means the change from one place, state of being, or condition to another place, state of being, or condition (Merriam-Webster Online, 2015).

Developmental Characteristics of Young Adolescents

Early adolescence is a distinct period of human growth and development situated between childhood and adolescence. During this remarkable stage of the life cycle, young adolescents, 10- to 15-year-olds, experience rapid and significant developmental change. Understanding and responding to the unique