Orange Middle School

Too bad Orange Middle School took six years to make changes in their school’s structure to make an impact on their struggling state testing results. They have made changes that appear, in theory, to make a difference to students performing better. Some areas that seem to at least allow students to feel connected to teachers/peers and administration is the use of “small learning communities”. This concept appears to be very similar to the team concept often utilized in many middle schools. The sense of community developed among teams allows students to feel part of a large extended family. The goal of the small learning community is to build “intimacy and structure that isn’t always present in impoverished homes.” A science teacher on one of the teams states, “This is a way of building relationships, without that first, nothing else will work.” I agree with this teacher. If a middle school student feels welcomed, safe and accepted they then can concentrate on academics.

Another concept that Orange Middle School implemented in their restructuring is the use of twice-weekly meetings of teachers in the small learning community. These meetings allow teachers to coordinate projects and discuss students. These meetings teachers can discuss students that perhaps are more vulnerable and may not be identified as quickly if time wasn’t set aside for teachers to discuss.

Another concept that may help Orange Middle School perform better in state testing is providing students with time during school or lunch periods as a tutor session. If a student has a study hall or during their scheduled lunch period they can attend a teacher’s tutor session. During these tutoring sessions students can come to assigned teachers to help with problems they may be having with their school work. In some schools, these tutoring sessions count as part of the teachers duties. They need to post the times and places they will meet students. When scheduling teachers, one teacher from each discipline would be assigned for each period a study hall is scheduled. Students can access an expert in the discipline.

Another aspect that always seems to improve student performance is the involvement of parents. In this community, I’m not sure if it would be effective, but it is worth a try. Having parents involved in the school community, even a few families, may impact the learning of some students.