Perspectives of a Researcher: Developmental Science: Why It Matters for Middle School and Justice

• In Event: Listening and Learning: Educational Stakeholders' Reflections and Perspectives on Implementing an Antiracist Curriculum for Middle-Schoolers

Abstract

The purpose of this presentation is to outline the developmental framework (stage environment fit) used to develop anti-racist advisory materials to demonstrate why middle school is such a meaningful stage to do anti-racist work with students. Stage-environment fit theory moves across ecological levels, from classroom to school to district to community, when trying to understand student experiences and outcomes. Theorists assert (Eccles & Roeser, 2012) students need to feel connected, independent, and competent to thrive and argue students’ failures are often a reflection of structural shortcomings rather than individual deficits. Nowhere is this disconnect between students’ needs and educational structures and practices greater than in middle schools. Consistent declines in academic achievement, engagement, and attendance during middle school reflect this mismatch (Ryan & Patrick, 2001). Thus, to understand student outcomes, one must look closely at the practices and policies within districts, schools, and classrooms.
Teacher practices, classroom structure, and activities are central to student outcomes in the classroom context (Roeser & Eccles, 1999). The direct effect teacher beliefs and practices have on student outcomes is well documented (Love & Kruger, 2005) and this effect is particularly pronounced for Black and Brown students. Due to bias that positions minoritized youth as bodies in need of control, Black and Brown students often learn in overly controlled classrooms despite research indicating rigid classrooms have negative effects on student outcomes (Allen, 2017). Moreover, when teachers of minoritized students hold deficit-oriented beliefs, these students have poorer academic and psychological outcomes than their white counterparts (Eccles & Roeser, 2012). These issues are heightened in middle school, when young adolescents are developmentally seeking greater autonomy, highly attuned to social cues, and thinking about their identities, including their racial and ethnic identities, and who they are in the world (NAESM, 2019).
District-wide systems, though somewhat removed from students’ micro-level interactions, nevertheless affect developmental outcomes. Experts suggest that adolescents, including middle school students, would benefit from greater opportunities to: develop non-academic skills, including socio-emotional and identity development; make impactful decisions; engage civically and make meaningful change in their communities, and be exposed to culturally relevant and affirming curriculum that includes perspectives of non-dominant groups (NASEM, 2019).
Each of the levels of the educational system is informed by what is taking place in the larger community, both immediate and distant. For example, funding mechanisms or resources of a school’s community shapes the training, or lack thereof, of the stakeholders at each of these levels. Moreover, larger social processes or movements shape each level of the schooling process. The U.S. is once again in a racial reckoning reminiscent of the civil rights movement and its effects are reverberating through schooling systems throughout the country. Given the interconnected nature of schooling according to stage-environment fit theory, it is important to look at issues of equity and anti-racism at multiple levels. Alongside outlining the theory, the researcher involved with the implementation of materials will discuss the challenges related to translational research and possible proactive solutions to alleviate possible issues (496)

Author

• Johari Harris, Kennesaw State University