These profiles of nine schools provide real-world examples of the practices discussed in the Middle Grades Action Kit for Superintendents and Principals, based upon EdSource's landmark Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades research.

Principals at these diverse middle grades schools from the study detail how they and their staffs are implementing creative strategies to support academic improvement and examine lessons learned during the implementation process.

Click on the green download button above for a single PDF with all nine profiles, or download them individually using the links below. 

Individual Profiles

• California Middle School, Sacramento, CA
• East Palo Alto Charter School, East Palo Alto, CA
• Granger Junior High School, National City, CA
• La Merced Intermediate School, Montebello, CA
• Los Amigos School, Palmdale, CA
• Stephen M. White Middle School, Carson, CA
• View Park Preparatory Accelerated Charter Middle School, Los Angeles, CA
• Vina Danks Middle School, Ontario, CA
• Woodrow Wilson Junior High School, Hanford, CA

 

These school profiles are part of a larger Middle Grades Action Kit for Superintendents and Principals that also includes:

• A Middle Grades Playbook that describes how the classroom, school, and district levels each can contribute to stronger middle grades education—including self-assessments and a compendium of actionable practices.
• Principal and teacher survey tools designed to help you evaluate practices in your school or district.
• A PowerPoint presentation that district and school leaders can use to start the conversation.
• A CD with electronic versions of all the materials, plus the original study documents.

 

   Back to Middle Grades Action Kit for Superintendents and Principals

EdSource thanks the Stuart Foundation for its generous project support of the development, design, and dissemination of the Middle Grades Action Kit. EdSource also acknowledges the United Way of Greater Los Angeles for supporting six school profiles.

Read the Research

• Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better - This EdSource study, released in 2010, is based on survey responses from 303 principals, 3,752 English language arts and math teachers in grades 6-8, and 157 superintendents. The study was designed to identify practices and policies that differentiate higher- from lower-performing middle grades schools that serve similar student populations.
• Improving Middle Grades Math Performance - This follow-up analysis to EdSource's landmark Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades study inquires further into the study data to provide a more in-depth look at middle grades mathematics practices and policies. The centerpiece is an empirical exploration of grade 8 Algebra I placement, based on longitudinal data linking the mathematics CSTs that students took in grades 7 and 8.