Comprehensive and Critical Review of Middle Grades Research and Practice 2000-2013

The purpose of this article is to synthesize reports of middle grades educational research and practice from 2000-2013. Given that practice is informed by research and vice versa, it is important to identify current patterns in published research and practice so that researchers can plan effective, relevant goals for future middle level research and practice. Since the beginning of the middle school movement in the 1960s (Alexander, 1995; Lounsbury, 2009), research in the middle grades has consistently informed practice. Scholars in the middle grades field have periodically examined research patterns (e.g., Bickmore et al., 2003; Hough, 2003; National Middle School Association, 1997, 2003). Such examinations have greatly contributed to the field by helping us understand the issues in middle grades research and practice over the years. Since the last significant examination of patterns in the field appeared more than a decade ago (Hough, 2003; National Middle School Association, 2003), it is time to consider once again the patterns evident in middle level reports on research and practice.This comprehensive and critical review of the literature identifies themes in research and practice reports, trends in topics, the most common theoretical frameworks, and research methods used in three middle grades publications from 2000-2013, specifically Middle Grades Research Journal (MGR./), Research in Middle Level Education Online (RMLE), and Middle School Journal (MSJ). One overarching research question guided this study: What are the themes, topics, theoretical frameworks, and research methods used in the research reports on middle level education? By exploring this question, this study aims to provide the middle level community with future directions for relevant and rigorous research designed to improve practice.BACKGROUND OF THE STUDYThemes within the three publications at the beginning of the 21st century clearly articulated a vision for middle level education. This vision focused on supporting the needs and interests of young adolescents. Supporters of the middle school philosophy promoted schools that were developmentally responsible and responsive. As such, structures and concepts such as teaming, advisory, student-centered learning, and integrated curricula became the cornerstones of such schooling models.The middle level philosophy of education promoted an awareness of the needs, interests and characteristics of young adolescents, and this philosophy was instrumental in creating schools that structured their own thoughtful visions and policies centered on the unique needs of this age group (Brinegar, 2009). While the middle grades model was centered on the notion that there was no one way to meet the needs of young adolescents, Brown (2005) noted the hegemony of a movement centered on a white, middle class, male perception of identity. Brown (2005) argued that a strong research base focused on multicultural and multilingual middle school settings needed to be established before the middle grades concept could be deemed successful in diverse settings for all young adolescent learners.The theoretical and methodological choices that authors make also impact the direction that the middle grades community undertakes. For example, we continue to heed the recommendations of Bickmore et al. (2003) who stress that authors of middle grades research must "address both theory and practice within single articles" (p. 28). According to Creswell (2009), the use of theory plays a substantive role in the research process-from developing a final outcome of a study to guiding the research design. These multiple uses of theory contribute to an understanding of how knowledge production can be constructed in the middle grades field, especially since many researchers draw upon theoretical constructs that are not related to middle level education.Similarly, research methods that authors use have a profound impact on the educational field (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005) and this is equally true for research at the middle level. …