The purpose of this research was to explore how beginning middle school teacher candidates describe their emerging visions for teaching. This collective case study of one cohort of teacher candidates in a middle grades teacher education program was informed by the literature on vision and by standards for middle level education. Twenty-two candidates (N = 22) enrolled in an introductory teacher education course participated. Data sources included their written vision statements and reflections on their field experience. Teacher candidates prioritized student-centered elements such as providing a developmentally responsive learning environment, creating engaging curriculum, and cultivating professional roles as advocates and collaborators. I discuss implications for teacher education.

We used Standards 3 and 4 of the Association of Middle Level Education (AMLE) 2022 Revised Middle Level Teacher Preparation Standards and The Successful Middle School: This We Believe characteristics as frameworks and presented a synthesis of the research literature (2015–2024) on the curriculum, instruction, and assessment related to middle-level teacher development. This review was part of a larger exploration of middle-level teacher development. Initially, we located 63 articles through our search terms on the curriculum, instruction, and assessment in teacher development. From there, we contributed to an updated research agenda for middle-level education . Through continued analysis and discussion, we identified trends in each area and across these three areas. We review the literature, highlight trends, and offer recommendations for middle-level educators and researchers.

Ossabaw Island is a Georgia barrier island, accessible solely by boat and protected from development through a public-private partnership between a foundation and the state. This site has the potential to serve as a primary resource for inspiration, education, and lifelong learning. Our study illuminates how one pre-service teacher (PST) and six teacher educators (TEs) experienced an immersive site visit to this local learning environment. We highlight the importance of experiencing places first-hand and using sources (e.g., oral histories) to make content connections. Additionally, the immersive site visit experience allowed us to collaboratively brainstorm place-based curricular units.

This research synthesis, highlighting the middle level curriculum, was created as part of a working group within the American Education Research Association (AERA) Middle level Education Research Special Interest Group (MLER SIG) to advance middle level education research. The literature review that informed this research synthesis included middle level-focused, peer-reviewed journal articles from 2016 to the present. Synthesis of the literature and iterative analysis led to organizing a middle level curriculum framework to inform middle level researchers, which included five focused areas for inquiry: (a) the curriculum and equity of experience and opportunity; (b) stakeholder power and the curriculum (development, implementation, and accountability); (c) goals and purposes for the curriculum; (d) teacher learning, roles, and enactment related to the curriculum; and (e) young adolescent well-being and experiences with the curriculum. Twenty-six research questions were developed to support new research in middle level curriculum; each question was cross-referenced with the five categories in the middle level curriculum framework to create a robust starting point for research questions. Recommendations for middle level research include (a) the need for more longitudinal research studies focusing on varying aspects of middle level education, (b) the need for more large-scale research studies examining the same context (e.g., school) or multiple contexts (e.g., school districts) over time, and (c) the need for the MLER SIG to initiate and support research studies addressing one or more aspects of this research agenda and include large-scale data collection and potentially external funding.

The conceptual framework for the College of Education at Georgia Southern University is: Reflective Practitioners for a Diverse World. Three of the five Middle Level Teacher Preparation Standards from the Association of Middle Level Education (AMLE, 2012) also specify reflection as a habit. Standard 5 on Middle Level Professional Roles, for example, states: “Middle level teacher candidates understand, reflect on, and are successful in their unique roles as middle level professionals.” In order for teacher candidates to become reflective, they need multiple opportunities to engage in reflection.

These classroom-based activities focus on Jimmy Carter, the Heritage Trust Act, and Ossabaw Island. We developed two short classroom experiences based on Georgia social studies standards with supporting English language arts standards: one classroom experience for second grade and the other for eighth grade. Teachers can adapt content and sequence for their grade levels, schedules, and other school-specific factors. Students will explore the history, culture, and geography of Ossabaw Island, Georgia’s third-largest barrier island. Classroom experiences include different sources, photo analysis, and a range of learning activities with modifications; figures and appendices are included.