RESTRUCTURE OF JUNIOR HIGH

INTRODUCTION. It is an accepted fact that the schools are under attack. Warranted or not, widespread criticism from all geographical regions and from all levels of society attest to this. It is obvious that our country is in turmoil, and since schools reflect society, this unrest is mirrored in the classroom.

If there is validity to these conclusions, educators can go in one of two directions. Taking an extreme position, one can argue that educators can do nothing until society solves its basic ills and then the schools would simply fall into line and the problems will wither away.

The committee believes that this is a simplistic viewpoint and not responsible. We would urge instead that educators present and fight for superior educational arrangements and seek the support of other segments of society.

Therefore, we are offering the following restructuring of the middle schools and hope that our contribution will help in some way to achieve the above goals.

GENERAL STRUCTURE. A typical student entering a middle school comes from a non-departmental elementary school. He usually arrives at an overcrowded school, is among the youngest in the building, changes classes each period and is given considerably more freedom than he previously experienced. This has been the traditional pattern for middle school students.

It is our judgment that this sudden "freedom" is overwhelming and creates a feeling of instability and disorien­tation. At the same time, due to maturation, our middle school student deserves greater freedom. Hopefully, the structure of a middle school will provide appropriate flexibility within a stable structure. We are also in agreement with authorities that approximately 800 pupils is an ap­propriate size for a middle school. We couple this belief with the concept of the necessity for increased individual attention and this necessitates an increase in personnel.

Lowest Grade

Units of 4 classes, 20 students each. Three units to the grade.

The same 4 to 5 major subject teachers for each unit.

The major subject rooms for each unit should be physically adjacent to each other.

The major subject teachers will be collectively responsible for the curriculum.

Large blocks of time will be allocated to the major subject teachers, which then can be subdivided as they deem proper.

Middle Grade

Here we have an older student, now familiar with the school, who, at this point, is capable of moving away from the "extended family" arrangement he experienced during his last term.

Therefore, we recommend that unit grouping be dropped and subject classes change as is now customary in present day junior high school or intermediate school.

However, we will now begin to offer our student course electives in each of his required "Minor" subjects.

Course descriptions will be printed, distributed and after consultation with official teachers, parents and guidance counselors, each student will select one course in each of his required minor areas.  This proposal for the middle grade should not eliminate the possibility electives in all subjects if the faculty desires it.

Upper Grade

At this level, we will stress again the concept that promotion in school reflects the opportunity for greater responsibility and increased freedom. We will now offer electives in all areas, subject to adult guidance. In the belief that a great deal of learning does, can and should go on outside of school, we want to expose our senior student to relevant informal learning. For the approximate equivalent of one individual study or research, tutoring of younger students, school-wide service, industry related work, community projects or work for pay, etc. All of the above will be appropriately supervised.

PERSONNEL. It is generally agreed by social critics and spokesmen in the fields of education, government, and industry that our present school system has become less and less able to respond to today's educational imperatives. Overcrowding, lack of funds, insufficient personnel, overall social turmoil and the newly developing social expectations are some of the contributing factors.

If schools are to succeed, personnel sufficient in numbers and variety must be utilized. The staff of a school should determine the direction and atmosphere of a school. However well-meaning a faculty may be, it cannot perform its teaching responsibilities if it has inadequate facilities and personnel.

The Restructuring Committee cannot provide "pat" answers but simply a framework from which to start. The main task, therefore, is to see that adults, both inside and outside the classroom be able to be flexible in attitude, action, and thought.

The school of today must be able to provide those facilities and services which help the students work at their physical and mental optimum in an atmosphere free of tension and pressures. For example, no educational expertise and counseling can be truly effective if the students are hungry. Whether through ignorance or poverty, many students come to school without breakfast or spend the day with either a snack or nothing for lunch. For these reasons the Committee feels that our schools should provide free breakfast and lunch programs for all students.

If the role of the school is "in loco parentis" we must be concerned with the physical need of the child as well as his mental development.

Homeroom Teachers: The Restructuring Committee suggests twelve (12) classes per grade with a total of thirty-six (36) homeroom teachers.

Paraprofessionals: A paraprofessional would assist each subject teacher. The paraprofessionals' duties would be kept flexible. These would include assisting the teacher, working with small groups or individual students and preparing instructional material. Their presence in the classroom would not only be an educational asset, but would also provide a vital link between the school and the community.

School Aides: There must be sufficient school aides to perform all non-professional tasks and to relieve teachers of all administrative assignments.

Administrative Personnel: The administrative work of the school would be taken care of by one (1) principal, one (1) administrative assistant and three (3) secretaries to each of the grade mentors. The functions of the mentor would stress teacher training and curriculum planning. We also recommend that the mentors be elected.

In many of our neighborhoods, non-English-speaking groups need special services. Education, especially the knowledge and comprehension of the English language, has always been the major force in the assimilation of the immigrant in America. New York City, the gateway to the nation, has usually been the first stop on the mainland for newcomers. Consequently, it is here in this vast metropolis that this problem must be faced.

Bilingual teachers in school and community relations can help bridge the gap between the newcomers' families and the school which educates the children. These teachers have a variety of non-classroom functions. These include some home visits, speaking at meetings, and translating materials. By being able to communicate with the parents in their native language, the bilingual teacher is a liaison who explains the role of the school, serves as a resource person regarding community services, and assists the parents in becoming more acquainted with the school and to eventually participate and become involved in school/home/community activities: The number of bilingual teachers will be determined by the needs of the school.

The Teacher of English as a Second Language (TESOL) is in the classroom.  His role is to prepare the students to become members of regular classes and to help the students adjust to their new urban environment. His classes are usually called "transition" or "orientation" classes. The length of the student's stay in these classes varies according to their ability to develop systematic control and fluency in English.  At no time should class register go beyond 15.

No school can function properly with an insufficient secretarial staff. The following licensed secretarial positions have been suggested:

a)  one (1) secretary of admissions and discharges;

b)  one (1) secretary for the principal and administrative assistant;

c)  one (1) secretary per grade (total = 3);

d)  one (1) secretary for the Guidance Department and Clinical Team;

e)  one (1) secretary for all compensatory time assignments (G.O., bus passes, etc.); and

f)  one (1 ) secretary to handle payroll.

Other Personnel:

Absent Teacher Reserves--10% of the staff

Family Workers--one (1) per grade

Attendance Teachers--at present the Committee is considering two (2) attendance teachers per school population of 800

Lab Assistant--one (1)

Industrial Arts Assistant--one (1 )

Home Economics Assistant--one (1)

Librarians--two (2)

Library Assistant--one (1) multi-media library

Speech Teacher--one (1)

Clinical Team:

One (1) per school.

The team shall consist of the following:

a) one (1) social worker;

b) one (1) psychologist; and

c) one (1 ) part-time psychiatrist.

Medical Team:

One (1) per school.

The team shall consist of the following:

a) two (2) full-time nurses;

b) one (1 ) half-time doctor;

c) one (1) dental hygienist;

d) one (1) part-time dentist; and

e) one (1) part-time optometrist.

Guidance Department:

Two (2) licensed guidance counselors per grade

CURRICULUM AND TEACHER TRAINING. Despite the limited space devoted to this topic in our report, this area is of major importance.

One of our basic principles has been the involvement of the participants in the planning. The curriculum for each school should be developed by each staff to meet the particular needs of that school.

It is beyond the scope of this committee to present new curricula in all areas for all of the schools involved. In fact, it would be contrary to the philosophy of the committee.

We, therefore, recommend as part of the program voluntary summer workshop for the entire staff with appropriate compensation. It is here that the specific staff for each of the schools will look afresh at their curriculum and devise, modify and update new ones. This committee will, in time, prepare specific approaches that should be explored during the workshop.

We cannot emphasize too strongly the need for curriculum reform.

Increased flexibility, new or redesigned curricula, heightened sensitivity and greater student participation are the desired outcomes. Unfortunately, this is easier to say than effectuate.

Any new program requires the complete understanding support of the staff. It is imperative therefore that this previously mentioned summer workshop also includes sessions that will encourage open discussion and offer legitimate insights into this new design.

This dialogue must also continue during the school term. Only in this way can proper support develop and become self-perpetuating.

MODIFIED HETEROGENEITY. Too often teachers in the New York City public junior high schools have been confronted with the problem of class labeling. Some classes are labeled "bright" while others are labeled "slow." Unfortunately this type of labeling cannot be avoided when classes are formed by homogeneous grouping. Whenever students are grouped by reading score or other ability factors, the school is, by necessity, placing the "bright" students in one class or group and the "slow" students in another class or group.

Regardless of how some schools have tried to disguise this homogeneity, the results of labeling are the same. Whether you call the class by exponent (6-1) or by room number (6-242), students and parents soon become aware of the situation, and the labeling game is on.

Therefore, we propose to break away from homogeneous grouping and to move toward heterogeneous classes. Realizing that teaching in a fully heterogeneous program is virtually an impossible task for a teacher (even with paraprofessional aid), the proposal for the new "middle school" is based on what may be termed "modified heterogeneity.' '

We use this term to denote the fact that each class will have a greater degree of ability range, but that range will not reach extremes.

In the lower grade, classes will be formed in this manner. All students in the class will be able to move along at the best individual rate, with students at the lower end of the class spectrum able to strive to move upward toward the higher end of the class spectrum. This goal will be a possible task since there will not exist extremes in any of the classes. In the middle grade, the "modified heterogeneous class" structure will be used in the same manner, with the additional factor of departmentalization. By the use of departmentalization, a student may be moved into another group for a specific subject in which the student is extremely strong or extremely weak.

In the upper grade, complete individualized programming will be used.

MARKS. Numerical grading is, in our opinion, often arbitrary; it emphasizes for "poor students" the failure syndrome and it encourages "good" students to look for the "grade" rather than to reach for relevant satisfaction.

Education today is rapidly being assigned a greater responsibility for the well-being and maturation of children, and, as we move towards this new concept, the need for greater flexibility in evaluation, coupled with better communication, seems to be apparent. Some educators and parents have complained that our present marking system is too inflexible and lacking in meaningful communication. As part of the restructuring of the middle school, we must begin to find new ways of evaluating the student and communicating the true meaning of that evaluation to the persons most concerned.

In the earlier grades report cards have been modified and these have been supplemented by a system of parent-teacher interviews. Several parent interviews are arranged each day until all the parents have been seen.

It is a goal of the Committee that a grading system be established that would allow for recognition of progress and at the same time would eliminate the stigma of failure.

We, therefore, urge that numerical grades be eliminated and that subject area reports, which indicate rates of progress on an individual basis, be used.

ALTERNATE SCHOOLS. Hopefully this middle school design will effectively unite students and teachers in more productive school experiences.

What is still needed however is something like a "halfway house" for those pupils who are so alienated from school that it is virtually impossible to get them to attend school or to do any worthwhile work if they do attend.

This alternate school should be physically apart from the school, very small, even more flexible than our basic design and one whose aim is to restore adult contact with these pupils so that they are more willing and able to return to the "mainstream."

STUDENT GOVERNMENT. The proper role for a child whether at home or in school is always difficult to define.

This Committee is convinced that middle school students can be given much greater school responsibility than is commonly practiced.

One of the tasks of the summer workshop will be the development of new guidelines for self-government, which will result in greater involvement for the students while not negating the professionals' responsibilities. It will be a task that must be done along with curriculum change. Some examples are:

• Rules and enforcement of school behavior and decorum;

• School and program evaluations;

• Program suggestions;

• School-wide student workshops;

• Social activities;

• Community projects; and

• Regular student leader, faculty meetings.

CONCLUSION. For those people who are familiar with some of the current middle school experiments, this program may not seem too radical, and deliberately so. Most of the newer school designs are small in scale or located in middle class areas. Almost without exception, New York schools are large, inner city schools.

What we hope the Committee has succeeded in doing is to begin the movement away from the traditional.

There are no perfect models. There are no complete solutions. We can only work towards constant improvement.

The model schools proposed by this Committee will make substantial changes and begin the long road for all concerned with education towards further innovation and more fruitful education. With the confidence gained from these first steps, the staff, parents, and children will be able to further evolve the restructured middle school.

Changes are coming; changes must come. We are convinced this is a major first step. (1973)

APPENDIX. Suggested Activities for the Fifth Day. By paralleling many school and community activities, all sectors-pupils, parents, faculties, and residents-can move toward greater homogeneity through shared interests and mutual benefits.

In the projected restructured middle school the "fifth-day" program allotment for extracurricular activities as well as many of the relevant classroom curricula can intermesh with community needs; and in working to help satisfy these needs pupils may in turn gain valuable experience in common with their elders in coping with life problems.

The following table of possible parallel activities is by no means definitive and complete but may serve to illustrate the almost limitless possibilities and as a framework for enlargement:

Examples of School Activities

A. Student government and the study of organizational procedure and the history and practice of creative dissent.

B. Group guidance and counseling workshops.

C. School beautification—anti-litter campaigns, bulletin boards, school gardens, murals, anti-vandalism education.

D. Home nursing and baby care classes and kindergarten and pre-K monitorships if any in school.

E. Home economics consumerism classes and assemblies.

F. In-school work experiences for pay or other compensation; cafeteria; library; laboratory; storerooms.

G. School journalism.

H. Performing arts, public speaking, dramatics, dance, creative writing, music.

I. Individual study and research project.

J. Tutoring and being tutored.

Examples of Out-of-School Activities

A. On-the-spot lobbying internships in political, economic and/or social action clubs and store-front organizations—envelope-stuffing, duplicating, leafleting.

B. Community- school rap sessions, lectures, workshops.

C. Neighborhood beautification and ecology watch-dogging, street and mini-park tree-planting, playground murals, Halloween store-window painting contests.

D. Child care center volunteers and paid child care aides, day camp junior counselorships, and cooperative baby-sitting agency.

E. Consumer education program, exhibits, workshops.

F. On-the-job programs: private industry; professional offices; public institutions; co-ops; orientation trips.

G. Community newsletters.

H. Public affairs, "tailgate" theater, community performances, lectures, anti-drug abuse plays.

I. Independent study outside public library; university campuses.

J. Tutoring and being tutored.