Educators and policymakers have debated in recent years how best to improve academic performance in the middle grades. In the absence of outcomes-based research about what works, school districts have reshuffled grade configurations, bolstered their focus on "academic rigor," and worked to ensure that students are engaged in school as they go through the turbulence of puberty. To find out what district and school policies and practices are linked to higher student performance in the middle grades, a team of researchers from EdSource, Stanford University, and American Institutes for Research spent eighteen months conducting the most extensive empirical study of this grade level to date. The study, Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades, was released in 2010. This Outlook highlights what policymakers can do to support the middle grades.

Key points in this Outlook:

    * High-performing middle schools align instruction with state standards and use student data to improve student learning.
    * States should align education spending with clear priorities to make the best use of scarce resources.
    * Competitive grant initiatives sponsored by the US Department of Education should emphasize the importance of rigorous standards and quality assessments and the use of student data to improve teaching and learning.

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