Social identity in adolescence refers to the way young people define themselves in relation to the social groups they belong to, such as their peers, family, cultural or ethnic communities, gender, and sometimes subcultures. All of these areas of a person’s identity are also influenced by the different contexts and the social discourses and expectations that are experienced. Social and emotional skills, competencies, or capacities are internal assets that can be learned and are linked to prosocial behavior and positive social identities. Developing strong social and emotional capabilities is particularly pertinent for young adolescents due to the convergence of developmental effects as they begin to form their sense of personal identity and shift to having a greater sense of independence. This paper presents the findings from a systematic literature review using PRISMA reporting guidelines of studies conducted between 2014 and 2024 that examined the links between social and emotional competencies and a young adolescent’s social identity formation. Four education-focused databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles published in English. Results were mapped against CASEL’s social and emotional skill sets. Very limited literature was found (n = 6) that explicitly addressed young adolescent identity formation and the need for social and emotional skills; however, key findings show that young adolescents utilize all five of CASEL’s social and emotional skill sets to support the development of their social identity. Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory is applied to the findings to consider the systemic influences. Questions for future research are also proposed.

The middle school concept, aimed at creating a more developmentally responsive learning environment for young adolescents, gained a stronghold in the later part of the 20th century. Proponents of this concept have argued continually for the holistic implementation of its six key characteristics if its benefits are to be realized. These characteristics include: (a) a challenging, integrative, and exploratory curriculum; (b) varied teaching and learning approaches; (c) assessment and evaluation that promote learning; (d) flexible organizational structures (i.e., including the physical space, scheduling, and grouping of students and teachers); (e) programs and policies that foster health, wellness and safety; and (f) comprehensive guidance and support services. Recently, Ellerbrock, Falbe, and Pomykal Franz identified key middle school organizational structures of people, place, and time as being interconnected and integral to effective middle school practices. Main also demonstrated the interconnected nature of these key characteristics and how organizational structures of people affected the successful implementation of other characteristics. Thus, how these organizational structures can and are being implemented has implications for our understanding of the effectiveness of other middle school practices. In this paper, researchers from both the United States and Australia examine and compare literature published between 2000 and 2018 addressing ways in which middle school/middle years organizational structures have been reported and categorized by structures of people, place, and time in these two countries. Pertinent literature related to organizational structures of middle schools in the United States and to middle years education in Australia was examined. Findings from studies and evaluations from each country are reported to provide an international perspective on the organizational structures of middle schools/middle years education across the two countries. Overall, since 2000, the body of knowledge about middle schools/middle years organizational structures has been surprisingly limited in comparison to their perceived importance in the field. This lack of research is concerning in the midst of educational reform in both countries, resulting in questions about the impact of school organizational structures on young adolescent development and learning.

The introduction of middle schooling in Australia has brought about changes to the working conditions of many teachers including finding themselves in teacher teams. The formation of such teams has been identified as critical to Australian middle school reform with teacher teams underpinning several of the fundamental components of a middle school philosophy. For teachers, however, changing their previous practice is a challenging task. Imposed changes often demand new knowledge and skills that teachers are unlikely to have met in their own education or developed in their preceding classroom work. However, changes in teaching practices must be complemented by changes at the school level. That is, individual learning must be supported by concurrent organisational learning. Using structured interviews and participant as observer field notes, this study focused on identifying factors at individual, team and school levels that could enable or hinder the successful implementation of teaching teams. At an individual level, we found that it took time for teachers to learn and perfect the necessary new forms of instruction. At a team level, team processes were shown to need administrative support (i.e. resources both human and physical), and at a school level, the norms and customs that shape a school’s culture were shown to either promote or frustrate teaming practices.

An evaluation of the effectiveness of a large-scale professional development (PD) programme delivered to 258 schools in Queensland, Australia is presented. Formal evaluations were conducted at two stages during the programme using a tool developed from Desimone’s five core features of effective PD. Descriptive statistics of 38 questions and thematic content analysis of open-ended responses reveal that the PD programme was reported to be effective for all five domains evaluated: duration; content focus; active learning; collective participation; and coherence. Recommendations arising from the planning and delivery of the programme include that future PD should be designed and evaluated in line with the framework that considers the evidence-based features of effective PD.

Worldwide, teachers are connecting with each other, contributing ideas and curating resources through a range of social media platforms. Use of social media is framed within monocultural assumptions. As such, little is known about how different cultural values affect the way teachers reason and action online. This small-scale exploratory study focuses on ICT expert teachers’ professional learning through social media and how socio-technical affordances predispose the way they engaged online. The socio-technical affordances include the relational interactions of the users, their capabilities and their intentions for the use of social media platforms. The study involved 15 teachers from Australia, Belgium and the USA. The findings present three categories that underpinned the ways teacher reasoned and actioned through social media with like-minded colleagues: non-competitive, competitive and adverse to competition. Cultural values at national and school level were found to influence how these teachers considered and enacted collaborative opportunities online.

Research confirms that when students disengage from learning, there is a greatly increased risk of them dropping out of school and not completing secondary education (Year 12). In an Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) report on Equity in Education [OECD. 2012. “Investing in Equity in Education Pays off”, in Equity and Quality in Education: Supporting Disadvantaged Students and Schools. Paris, France: OECD. doi:10.1787/9789264130852-3-en], school dropout rates in developed countries averaged 20% and, in some countries, was as high as 25%. Lyche [2010. Taking on the Completion Challenge. A Literature Review on Policies to Prevent Dropout and Early School Leaving. OECD Education Working Papers, No. 53. OECD. doi:10.1787/5km4m2t59cmr-en] noted that school dropout does not ‘just happen’ but rather is a long process of disengagement from school. Students entering early adolescence are experiencing rapid and complex changes to their social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development that can positively or negatively affect their experience in education environments. During this time, there is also an increased expectation, both at school and at home, that young adolescents should accept greater responsibility for themselves and their learning. However, when individual students fail to regulate their behaviour or manage the increasing difficulty of the academic work, they can begin to disengage from learning and become entrenched in a downward cycle of poor academic achievement and poor social competence. With an increasing trend in young adolescents to disengage from learning, identifying how to reengage students is critical to their social and academic success. This study reports on the key features of an early intervention programme that targets young adolescent students who are already showing early signs of disengaging from school. Data show that the programme aligns with evidence-based practice and has had a positive effect in promoting and building students’ social and emotional efficacy and re-engaging them in learning.