Middle School Matters

August 03, 2025

Middle School Matters

Take a moment to think back on your middle school years...

Does the thought make you cringe? I actually shudder when I think back to my own middle school years in the late 1980s. Everything was awkward. Everything.

I've been a teacher in three different middle schools over the last 23 years, and I've heard many students and even some parents say that middle school doesn't really matter. The grades don't count, they don't factor into a GPA that will mean anything, and they've already learned the basics of reading, writing, and math in elementary. I've also seen parents railing against their local middle school over incidents in which their child got into trouble, often for the first time in their schooling. And so middle school often gets dismissed as "just a step to get through" between elementary and high school.

Middle school is not irrelevant, it is not pointless, and it does matter. In fact, middle school is a vital step in the educational process. Skipping over it or not taking it seriously is a mistake.

Middle schools help children build systems that they need to be comfortable and successful in high school and beyond. Systems.

Think of the educational process as a construction project. We are building a house.

First, the ground must be excavated and the foundation built. In schooling terms, these are the years of early childhood education, where the foundation of socialization, letter and number recognition, and reading take place. When I Google "PK-2 learning", the AI overview results say, "In Pre-K through 2nd grade, children learn foundational skills in math, reading, writing, science, and social studies, along with developing important social and emotional skills." Early childhood education is the foundation.

Next, we move into the elementary years, where the framework is done. This structural framework includes further development of reading and comprehension, mathematical operations, basic physical and social sciences, and greater social-emotional development. This stage in construction forms the frame, outer walls, and roof of our house. In education, it builds the structure students need to succeed in the next stages.

Now we arrive at the stage in a construction project that determines the comfort and functionality of what will eventually be a house in which we want to live. Systems. In construction, the plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems are installed. Are they pretty? No. Do we think about them after they are installed? Only if they aren't working. Do guests enter a home and say, "Wow, I love that wiring! Is that copper?" or "Can I see your air conditioning unit?" Probably not! In fact, we try to keep all of these things hidden. Pipes and wires are hidden behind walls. Air conditioning units are placed behind the house, hidden by bushes or fences where they won't take away from our home's curb appeal.

This is middle school! We cringe when we think about it. We hide those years deep in our memories. But we needed them, as do our students today. Middle school teachers work so hard to help students "install" the systems they need to be successful in high school and in life.

Eleven and twelve-year-olds enter their first day of middle school during one of the biggest hormonal transitions of their lives. Their bodies are changing rapidly and the desire to fit in can become all-consuming. They want to belong and they don't want to stand out too much. In the midst of this change, they are also given their first big taste of independence at school. In most middle schools, students navigate their own way from class to class and have to keep track of their own supplies.

It's scary at first. What if I get lost? What if I can't open my locker? What if I'm late to class or can't find my class? Where will I sit at lunch? What if I don't have friends? I've seen students cry or panic at their lockers, in tears or near so over not being able to find a classroom, and some so forlorn and scared that they wouldn't be able to ask a teacher for help. I was that student in 1986.

Middle schools don't just toss children into this seemingly perfect storm of circumstances without support. We are there to help children navigate this very messy stage in education (and life). We work to build systems and we are there to guide them through the process. Middle schools teach students about about the personal, social, and emotional systems of time and task management, self-advocacy and problem-solving, conflict management and working with others (even those who are different), planning ahead, communicating with adults and peers, and making positive choices.

Positive choices cannot be made without the freedom to choose. Middle schoolers are given a level of independence to allow them to begin making some choices. Choosing the shortest (or longest) route to class, choosing to keep materials organized (or not) in bags and lockers, choosing when and how long to chat with friends between classes, choosing where to sit in the cafeteria. Will middle school students make poor choices? Will they make mistakes? Yes! Often, the first time a student gets into trouble at school is in middle school. It's not because middle schools are bad places. It's because students have more freedom to choose! Maybe it's too many tardies. Maybe it's pushing and shoving, or unkind words uttered in a very lively and buzzing hallway between classes. Maybe it's a spat within a group of friends. We can't expect students to learn to make positive choices without this freedom, and middle schools provide the structure and support to get these systems functioning. Reminders in the hallway to "get to class", lessons on how to organize and time to do so, and guidance through peer conflicts are all support systems provided by middle schools.

Are some middle schools better than others at these things? Sure. Does bullying happen in middle schools? Definitely. Those first years of independence are hard. Teachers can't be everywhere or see and hear everything in the crowded and noisy hallways of a middle school. But we are in those hallways supporting and guiding students, and attentive when situations may arise. It's part of the system.

Middle schools also work on building academic systems with our students. Of course we teach content--math, language arts, science, social studies--all of those subjects need greater development to prepare a student for the more challenging content of high school. But more importantly, middle schools guide students in the systems of planning and tracking assignments and projects, utilizing online learning management systems to track grades and locate materials, setting, tracking, and meeting academic goals, effective note-taking skills and strategies, and seeking out academic assistance when needed.

The plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems are more than necessary to make a house comfortable. One could live in a home without all of these systems, but it would not be pleasant or comfortable. It might provide shelter and even look nice, but it would be too hot or cold. There would be no running water and no power. We know all about the discomfort of losing power or water at home, or of the AC going out in July.

Without the middle school experience and the systems that are installed there, high school would be much less comfortable. Students need the skills and systems that are developed in middle school. Imagine skipping or shoddily installing the systems in a home, and going on to insulation and drywall (ninth and tenth grade), then painting, fixtures, cabinets, counters, and other design features (eleventh grade into higher education) without those systems running as they should. It might look the same, but it would not be a pleasant place to live. Installing or repairing systems after the fact (or waiting until high school to learn them) would be challenging and costly. The cost paid by the student who starts high school without efficient systems in place is time, opportunity, and early success. Those of us who teach middle school work intently, often with student resistance, to ensure that every student starts high school with fully functional social, emotional, and academic systems in place.

Middle school is hard. Middle school is awkward. Middle school matters!