A cross-sectional investigation of academic and affective differences related to junior high school or middle school experiences.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to empirically investigate, in 10th grade students, cognitive and affective differences which might be attributable to either middle or junior high school experiences. The research questions were designed to find differences in self-esteem, grade point averages, in participation in clubs, teams, and student government, and in attendance and discipline between two groups of respondents--graduates from two middle schools and graduates from a junior high school. The research design included the 10th grade population of a single high school whose feeder schools included two middle schools and a junior high school. Respondents from outside the feeder pattern were excluded from the study. The study used eight dependent variables, including GPAs, attendance, discipline referrals, participation on clubs, teams, and student government, and two measures of self-esteem. Independent variables were types of feeder school environment, middle or junior high, from which the respondents had graduated. An analysis of variance was conducted to test relationships between feeder school type and each dependent variable. The findings of this study indicate that there are slight and statistically nonsignificant differences between respondents from the two environments. Junior high school respondents achieved slightly higher mean GPAs, had fewer absences, participated marginally more in clubs and teams, and scored slightly higher on one measure of self-esteem. Middle school students participated more in student government, had only .2% fewer discipline referrals, and scored slightly higher in the second measure of self-esteem. The lack of a statistically significant difference for any of the variables could be the result of several factors. These factors include the extent of real difference between the junior high and middle schools, the newness of the middle schools and the degree of implementation of middle school programs, and the different ethnic composition of the middle schools as opposed to that of the junior high school.