Why Middle Start?

Research and Evaluation

Middle Start Makes a Difference

The true measure of any school reform effort is whether it made a difference in teacher practice and student achievement. In the case of AED Middle Start, research indicates that it has. Over more than a decade, AED Middle Start has steadily improved teacher and student performance, as indicated by better test scores in the gatekeeper subjects of reading and math and increased school capacity to support and sustain innovative reform. Findings of several internal and external evaluations, including quasi-experimental studies, confirm that:

• AED Middle Start schools consistently outpaced similar schools and state averages in achievement gains.
• Student achievement in AED Middle Start schools improved significantly in reading, mathematics, science, and social studies.
• AED Middle Start schools reported significant improvements in school climate, teacher collaboration, and student engagement in learning.
• AED Middle Start has fostered innovations that led to the types of positive changes in student learning and achievement described above.

Academic Excellence

Research conducted over a three year period clearly indicated that Middle Start programs brought about a positive impact on student academic performance, healthy development, and equity.

Michigan three-year test score gains for AED Middle Start students

Source: Michigan Department of Education (calculations by Corbett & Wilson, 2005, and internal AED staff)

Student achievement in Michigan Middle Start schools increased 23 percent in math and 34 percent in reading over the three-year period ending in 2004. Between 2001 and 2004, seventh and eighth grade students in Mississippi Middle Start schools improved by 15 to nearly 30 percent in reading and by 20 to 26 percent in math.

Arkansas three-year test score gains for AED Middle Start students

Source: Arkansas Department of Education (calculations by CPRD, 2005)

In 2005, research showed that in three years, Middle Start schools in Arkansas improved in sixth grade literacy (15%) and math (12%), as well as in eighth grade literacy (15%) and math (13%).

Mississippi three-year test score gains for AED Middle Start students

Source: Mississippi Department of Education (calculations by CPRD, 2005b)

Research conducted in 2005 showed that in three years, Middle Start schools in Mississippi outpaced the comparison schools in test score gains in the seventh and eighth grades.

Adequate yearly progress

A 2005 study showed that before working with Middle Start only about 50 percent of Middle Start schools met adequate yearly progress goals (AYP) under No Child Left Behind; in two years this increased to over 90 percent, exceeding the AYP rate for the comparison schools and the state.

Healthy development and equity

Based on results from surveys, researchers have found that Middle Start programs help students with healthy development and give them a sense of equity in the school and the classroom.

Overall School Improvements

• Studies showed that the majority of AED Middle Start schools cultivated effective leadership, a positive climate, rigorous instructional practices, and greater student engagement.
• In comparison with teachers in similar schools, Middle Start teachers exhibited more consistent improvements in classroom practice, school leadership, coalition building, curriculum and rubric development, and parent engagement.
• Another explained that the program affected her classroom "to the fullest extent." She formed closer relationships with students and redesigned instruction to include cooperative learning and teaming.
• One Middle Start principal stated, "Teachers are better prepared, have better lesson plans, and are more focused on students. Students became more engaged in their classes..."
• Researchers found that disciplinary incidents decreased and students expressed a greater sense of belonging and a feeling of safety in school.
• Many schools noted an improvement in school climate because of the schoolwide efforts of Middle Start coaches and leadership teams.
• One study found that the majority of district leaders believed Middle Start raised their own level of awareness of effective middle-grades education, and was effective in connecting schools with meaningful professional development.

For More Information

• View the complete Evidence of Effectiveness document.
• View Middle Start: Implementation, Impact, and Lessons Learned, 2003-2006. This is the report prepared by Dick Corbett and Bruce Wilson for the Academy for Educational Development during summer 2006.