Search

The work of teacher education in a 2020’s context is challenging and filled with opportunity. With a diversifying P-12 student body (Love, 2020; Pitts, 2019) and the confluence of social, political, and educational factors (Nieto & Bode, 2018), the complexities of teacher education are vast and fluid. In a historical moment that has included teaching in a time of pandemic, national reckonings over race and injustice, and explicit legislation to guide teaching about social history (Kelly et al, 2023), effective middle level teacher education is multifaceted. It calls for the development of teacher candidates skilled in creating school environments that are “welcoming, inclusive, and affirming for all” (Bishop & Harrison, 2021, p. 12). It also necessitates middle level educators to grapple with the impact of systemic bias and to hold explicit commitments toward equitable and justice-oriented pedagogies (Bishop & Harrison, 2021; Ranschaert, 2021). In “Course Correction” we tell the story of our collaborative self-study of teacher education practices, situated in middle level education. Within this inquiry, we sought to identify points of bias that influence and inhabit our work by assessing our instructional frames, curricular resources, and practices. We also sought to examine our teaching through a critical, antiracist lens, a necessary framing for the 2020’s teacher education context.

In 2016, the Middle Level Education Research Special Interest Group (MLER SIG) of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) published "The MLER SIG Research Agenda," a white paper identifying critical issues and concerns facing the field of middle level education. Since its release, much has changed. This manuscript is a revised version of "The MLER SIG Research Agenda." More than 40 researchers from across the globe collaborated to develop an agenda for future middle level research that illuminates strategies for moving middle level education forward in support of young adolescents within the current state of affairs. The research summarized in this manuscript represents eight focus areas: (a) middle grades curriculum; (b) middle grades pedagogies; (c) middle level certification and licensure; (d) middle level leadership; (e) middle level schools, classrooms, culture, and learning environments; (f) middle level teacher development; (g) social and emotional wellbeing; and (h) young adolescent identity and experiences. Each group summarized the current literature in their area and developed a list of questions to guide future middle level education research. This manuscript is intended to start conversations, generate ideas for research projects, and contribute new knowledge to the field of middle level education.