The Hechinger Report

JULY 7, 2019

Juliet Basinger, a rising seventh grader at Laing Middle School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, demonstrates the capabilities of a drone she built in the school’s Fab Lab. At the state level, Maine passed a law two years ago to expand career-and-technical education to middle schools. PLEASANT, S.C.

Middle School 112

Middle School Elementary School High School Advocacy 112

TCI

NOVEMBER 12, 2024

history instruction is essential for developing informed, engaged citizens who can navigate the complexities of modern society. Fordham Institute evaluated the state-of-state standards for civics and history across all fifty states. History in elementary and middle school; also require at least one year of U.S.

Civics 98

Civics Teaching Civic Engagement Social Studies 98

Digital Promise

MAY 25, 2017

The Digital Promise maker learning team spent some time in Greer, South Carolina this winter observing and filming the Riverside Middle School Library Club students as they worked to design solutions to problems they identified in their community. If that doesn’t sum up middle school, I don’t know what does.

Library 110

Library Middle School Tradition Lesson Plan 110

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 3, 2024

Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, and Arizona State University found that human feedback was generally a bit better than AI feedback, but AI was surprisingly good. On a five-point scale that the researchers used to rate feedback quality, with a 5 being the highest quality feedback, ChatGPT averaged a 3.6

Research 139

Research Humanities History Middle School 139

ED Surge

MARCH 19, 2024

Research shows that everybody finds things like that annoying, but if you're a first-generation college student, those start to trigger worries about belonging, because there's a belonging uncertainty there,” he says. Walton has spent decades researching how to foster a stronger sense of belonging in education settings.

Research 140

Research Psychology K-12 Artifacts 140

The Hechinger Report

JANUARY 28, 2025

Related: Our free weekly newsletter alerts you to what research says about schools and classrooms. The starkest example of growing inequality is in eighth grade math, wherethe achievement gap grew to the largest in the history of the test. More than 450,000 fourth and eighth graders, selected to be representative of the U.S.

Government 145

Government Economics Elementary School Research 145

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 28, 2020

What stands out for me is how readers remain interested in basic research into how kids learn, from reading to critical thinking to collaborating with peers. Thank you to everyone who has read and commented on my weekly stories about education data and research. Will history repeat? Sign up for the Hechinger newsletter.

Research 121

Research Tutoring Education Critical Thinking 121

The Hechinger Report

MARCH 26, 2019

Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images. Given that teachers are charged with imparting the contributions of women to their students throughout Women’s History Month, a special place should be reserved during March for the women teachers who go unrecognized. Sign up for Hechinger’s newsletter.

History 105

History Charter School Archiving Advocacy 105

The Hechinger Report

JULY 7, 2024

When I first started teaching middle school, I did everything my university prep program told me to do in what’s known as the “workshop model.” Is Shakespearean English simply too difficult for middle schoolers? history (why was the Berlin wall built?) I let kids choose their books. That shouldn’t be surprising.

Teaching 145

Teaching Geography History Library 145

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 17, 2021

Online “trips” let kids peek in on polar bears in the Antarctic, walk through exhibits in natural history museums, or visit art collections in Paris — and helped teachers give students a break from the monotony of remote learning. The program, called Research Quest , was designed for middle school students.

Museum 136

Museum Archaeology Middle School History 136

The Hechinger Report

MAY 24, 2021

Because students missed so much instruction during the pandemic, teachers should get extra time to fill all those instructional holes, from teaching mathematical percents and zoological classifications to discussing literary metaphors and American history. That’s worked well in Chicago high schools but not in Miami middle schools.

Tutoring 141

Tutoring Charter School Middle School Advocacy 141

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 7, 2023

In Norfolk, Virginia, the juniors and seniors enrolled in an African American history class taught by Ed Allison were working on their capstone projects, using nearby Fort Monroe, the site where the first enslaved Africans landed in 1619, as a jumping off point to explore their family history.

History 98

History American History Teaching K-12 98

The Hechinger Report

JANUARY 13, 2020

A study of 2,500 middle school students finds that the acquisition of scientific reasoning skills produces stronger learning gains. In September 2019, I wrote about a review of the research on how to teach critical thinking by University of Virginia professor Daniel Willingham. Weekly Update. Future of Learning. Proof Points.

Critical Thinking 143

Critical Thinking Teaching Psychology Middle School 143

The Hechinger Report

JULY 13, 2021

Dawn Lineberry, a sixth grade math teacher at Jackson Middle School in Guilford County, North Carolina, noticed that some of her students were struggling with long division. Principal Angela McNeill of Eastern Guilford Middle School said that students had lost ground in multiplication, division and problem solving.

Tutoring 141

Tutoring Middle School K-12 High School 141

The Hechinger Report

OCTOBER 5, 2020

Fordham Institute found that elementary school students who studied more social studies, including geography, history and civics, scored higher on fifth grade reading tests. Middle school students were asked to read a passage about a half inning of baseball and then reenact the action using wooden figures on a model field.

Social Studies 145

Social Studies Civics Geography Elementary School 145

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 1, 2021

Under a first-in-the-nation law that took full effect this year, students from across the state must take part in at least two “student-led, nonpartisan civics projects” — one in eighth grade, and another in high school. Peyton Amaral, an eighth grader at Morton Middle School in Fall River, Mass., Credit: Christopher Blanchette.

Civic Engagement 142

Civic Engagement Civics Teaching Middle School 142

The Hechinger Report

APRIL 25, 2024

Two years ago, when I visited Westwood High School in Mesa, a suburb of Phoenix, every incoming freshman started the year in a very unusual way. Back when my mom attended Westwood in the early 80s, students made the typical walk from class to class, learning from one teacher in math and another for English or history or science. (My

Teaching 134

Teaching K-12 Middle School High School 134

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 6, 2023

The increasing politicization of social studies was a concern shared by many educators, education leaders, researchers and advocates at last week’s annual NCSS conference in Nashville. Glenn Youngkin.

Social Studies 142

Social Studies Teaching Civics Advocacy 142

The Hechinger Report

JANUARY 23, 2022

recalled the uncertainty, loneliness and chaos of coronavirus upheaval as she discussed potential career interests with school counselors and classmates at Northview Middle School on a rainy December morning. It really impacted how they view school and careers,’’ said Northview principal Steven Pelych, who analyzed the results.

Middle School 112

Middle School High School History Research 112

The Hechinger Report

APRIL 1, 2021

Throughout its history, the program has maintained high quality standards and during the year studied, a majority of teachers had master’s degrees. By 2019, 60 percent of the state’s 4-year-olds were served by the program, which met 8 out of 10 quality benchmarks set by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER).

Psychology 143

Psychology Middle School History Public School 143

ED Surge

JUNE 28, 2023

Everyone has a memory about feeling lost on the first day of school — figuratively or literally. Yes, it can be, according to two groups of researchers who have tested how programs aimed at fostering belonging have impacted students’ academic performances. Middle School Blues It’s not just your imagination.

Middle School 112

Middle School Psychology Humanities Research 112

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

At the Williston-Elko Middle School in rural South Carolina, where she has taught for seven years, more than three out of every four students are poor enough to qualify for free or reduced-priced lunch. Students need to read in order to learn other subjects, from science to history. Parents of young children are worried.

Elementary School 145

Elementary School Library Middle School Tutoring 145

The Hechinger Report

OCTOBER 8, 2018

The changes were supported by researchers from Stanford, Berkeley and Silicon Valley. Related: How Silicon Valley schools are trying to boost lower-income students into high-tech jobs. Other high-performing countries, such as Japan and Finland, have learned that speeding through middle school does not result in higher achievement.

Middle School 112

Middle School High School Tradition History 112

Psych Learning Curve

JANUARY 31, 2020

Researchers say that reducing the burden of teaching experienced by so many teachers is critical to improve student success — both academically and behaviorally. The outsize influence of your middle-school friends (The Atlantic) The intensity of feelings generated by friendship in childhood and adolescence is by design.

Middle School 52

Middle School Psychology Critical Thinking Cultures 52

The Hechinger Report

SEPTEMBER 28, 2023

But North Carolina State University is taking a different approach to teaching the subject, said Rachel Levy, executive director of the school’s new Data Science Academy. State launched the academy two years ago to introduce the use of the subject across disciplines, from biology and art to English and history.

K-12 134

K-12 Social Studies Lesson Plan Middle School 134

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 12, 2023

Some of it arises from recent test scores showing dismal middle school performance: Students who started middle school early in the pandemic lost more ground in math than any other group and are still struggling.

Education 142

Education Middle School High School Economics 142

The Hechinger Report

JULY 21, 2022

Nicholls State’s department of teacher education, in partnership with Louisiana State University’s school of education and the Louisiana Sea Grant program based at the university, was awarded a two-year National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grant for the project.

Controversial Topics 122

Controversial Topics Education Lesson Plan K-12 122

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

The program trains educators at K-12 schools whose students include Native children on different ways they can introduce young people to programming, robotics and coding. But computer science lessons like the ones at Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School are relatively rare.

K-12 131

K-12 Heritage Middle School Cultures 131

The Hechinger Report

MAY 13, 2021

What I learned surprised me and convinced me that their voices must be part of any decisions made about what school should look like not just next fall, but now and in the future. To my shock, Kamron Freeman, a seventh grader at La Quinta Middle School in La Quinta, California, told me, “Remote learning has helped me focus.

High School 144

High School Middle School Cultures Teaching 144

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 26, 2024

Research shows a clear link between students’ postsecondary success and the highest level of math they took in high school. Putting this bill to work will expose many students to the satisfaction of higher math just before middle school. I was lucky to have had tangible experiences with problem-solving even younger.

High School 136

High School Elementary School Middle School History 136

Students of History

MAY 25, 2023

History is a tapestry of interconnected events, people, and ideas. Helping students to make connections in your curriculum is a powerful way to deepen their understanding of history and to see its connection to the world today. As you can imagine, are sometimes challenging, but fun for advanced or AP level history students.

History 52

History Critical Thinking Middle School Research Skills 52

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 29, 2016

Fewer than 20 percent of high school students knew that simply looking at one photo online is not enough research to gauge if something is really happening. And among middle school students, 80 percent did not understand that “sponsored content” on a news organization’s website is paid advertising.

Civics 112

Civics Advocacy Elementary School Middle School 112

The Hechinger Report

MARCH 5, 2019

I remember another white parent, when she learned that my son was not going to the most selective, predominantly white middle school in our district, looking at me in disbelief and saying, “I thought he had high tests scores?”. In his middle school mind, being selective in and of itself did not make a school “good.”

Public School 111

Public School Sociology Middle School Cultures 111

ED Surge

DECEMBER 6, 2023

Every week at the Nysmith School in Herndon, Virginia, Philip Baselice breaks out a game to teach his class about key world events. Baselice teaches history to middle schoolers, and game-based simulations have been part of his teaching arsenal for the last nine years, ever since he first tried it. “I

Middle School 142

Middle School Teaching Lesson Plan History 142

Dangerously Irrelevant

MAY 31, 2017

Some folks know that I started my education career as a middle school Social Studies teacher in Charlotte, North Carolina. It also offers a YouTube channel on which historians discuss their work , making history come alive for contemporary youth. We could find history games at Playing History or Flight to Freedom.

Social Studies 76

Social Studies Teaching Archiving Geography 76

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 22, 2022

Education researchers have been studying ways to prevent behavior problems from erupting in the first place, much like the field of preventive medicine aims to help people live healthier lives to minimize incidence of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. This story also appeared in Mind/Shift. The session resembled a theater workshop.

Classroom Management 112

Classroom Management Charter School Middle School Psychology 112

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 13, 2024

That’s because so many students, even incoming ninth graders, arrive at the school without basic reading skills, according to Douglas Fisher, an administrator at the school. While some students also receive one-on-one remediation, Fisher said that research shows those interventions aren’t enough to close the gap. “We

High School 145

High School Teaching Primary Sources K-12 145