Switching To Middle School Can Be Hard On Kids, But There Are Ways To Make It Better-对学生来说升入中学是艰苦的,但却是变得更好的一种方式.
Anya Kamenetz
"I'll be famous one day, but for now I'm stuck in middle school with a bunch of morons." That'sharshlanguage from the downtrodden sixth-grade narrator ofDiary of A Wimpy Kid,a blockbuster series ofgraphic novels.
“总有一天我会出名的，但现在，我和一群傻子在上中学”被一个6年纪的孩子说出来的粗话,一句儿童绘本<小屁孩日记>中非常著名的一句话
But it speaks to a broader truth.
但确实说出了事实
Sixth Grade Is Tough; It Helps To Be 'Top Dog'
六年级很艰难,能帮助你成为顶尖者.
A large body of researchsuggests that studentswho go to middle school or junior high do worse academically, socially and emotionally, compared to the young teenagers who get to be the oldest students at schools with grades K-8.
大量的研究数据表明,相比较K8年级最大的青少年学生而言,升上中学或者更高年级的的孩子来说,他们的专业课水平,社交能力,情感能力都更差一些.
Anew paperin theJournal of Early Adolescencereinforces this message. The study found that starting a new school in either sixth or seventh grade hurts students' perceptions of their own reading ability and motivation to work hard in English
Journal of Early Adolescence报纸也认同此观点.研究发现早在六年级或七年级进入新学校学习对学生的自我阅读感知能力和主动努力学习英语的能力是有伤害的.
It tracks nearly 6,000 students fromkindergartenthrough eighth grade. The authors compared the performance of students who attended a K-8 school, to those who left for a middle school in sixth grade, or a junior high in seventh grade. They focused on outcomes by eighth grade, to rule out the negative impact that may have come merely from making the transition to a new school itself.
选取了8年级幼儿园的将近6000名学生.研究人员将他们和已经在K-8中学的六年级的学生,或中学7年级的学生进行比较.他们关注八年级的结果,通过向新学校转学来排除负面的结果.
The negative effects were exaggerated for students from higher-income households. That surprised Elise Cappella, a lead author on the study and associate professor of applied psychology at New York University. Although children from lower-income households did worse in schooloverall, switching to middle school didn't affect them as severely as the mostprivilegedkids.
过于夸大的负面结果来自于高收入家庭的学生.这个结果让研究项目的领头人,纽约大学应用心理学副教授Elise Cappella感到非常惊喜.在所有的学校中,低收入家庭中的学校学生全部都表现更差.升入中学并不能对这些特殊学生有更多的影响.
Here's How Schools Can Soften The Blow Of Sixth Grade
学校是如何温柔打击六年级
Most students this age attend a middle or junior high school. So, is the evidence we need to do away with them?
大部分这个年级的学生都会升入高中,那么是不是我们需要清除他们的证据呢?
"I don't think middle and junior high schools are the problem or the solution," says Cappella. "Instead, we need to strengthen all schools that serve early adolescents, regardless of whether they are K-8, middle schools or junior high schools."
“我不认为中学是问题或者解决办法”Cappella说”正是这样,我们应该需要强化他们,无论他们是中学生或者是K8年级的学生.
Educators should be aware of the brain science of the early teen years, says Cappella.
Cappella说教育工作者应该意识到青少年的大脑科学.
"Early adolescence is a time of major growth," she says. "Brain development occurs at a rapid pace. Young people are experiencing physiological changes [puberty], social changes [peer group influence], and personal changes [identity development].
“青少年是主要成长的一段时间”她说”大脑在快速的发育,年轻人经历这生理的变化,社会的变化,个体的变化
And schools, she says, are "uniquely situated" to help.
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脚踏式大脑比赛的惊喜:终点线
Cappella says schools that work consider the following:
·Employ teachers who understand early adolescent development
·Provide a balance of autonomy and support
·Activate peers as a positive influence
·Offer challenging and engaging instruction
·Provide opportunities for students to build competence and productive relationships
Cappella说学校应该考虑到以下几点:
1.雇佣理解早期青少年发展的老师
2.提供自治和帮助的平衡
3.树立同年龄积极的榜样
4.提供具有挑战性和吸引力的指导
5.提供机会让学生建立能力和生产关系
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原文来自 NPR