Mathematics placement and the transition to middle school

Professional School Counseling, Feb, 2007 by Patrick Akos, Marie Shoffner, Mark Ellis

The transition to middle school has been a frequent research topic in recent years. The findings have highlighted both the significant risk and opportunity for school counselor intervention in the transition. One particularly important component of the multifaceted transition is course placement. The importance and influence of mathematics and mathematics placement and the role of the school counselor in this process are outlined. Specifically, pilot data that underscore the importance of school counselor collaboration with parents and mathematics faculty are presented.

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School counselors are in an excellent position to construct and enact programs that promote students' successful and equitable transition from elementary school to middle school (American School Counselor Association, 2005). In particular, the potential influence of school counselors with respect to students' placement in middle school mathematics is crucial. This article begins broadly with a presentation of the research on the transition to middle school, then examines more specifically research highlighting the critical importance of initial mathematics placement and the effects of inequitable patterns of placement on students' future learning trajectories. Finally, pilot data from a survey of fifth- and sixth-grade parents about their children's mathematics placement demonstrate the need for parent, teacher, and school counselor collaboration in this transition.

Prior research has identified significant declines in academic achievement following the elementary to middle school or junior high transition (e.g., Alspaugh, 1998; Anderman, Maeher, & Midgley, 1999; Chung, Elias, & Schneider, 1998; Crockett, Peterson, Graber, Schulenberg, & Ebata, 1989; Diemert, 1992; Gutman & Midgley, 2000; Seidman, Allen, Aber, Mitchell, & Feinman, 1994). Along with achievement declines, students' self-concept of ability and motivation also suffer (Mizelle & Irvin, 2000; Wigfield, Eccles, Mac Iver, Reuman, & Midgley, 1991). Significantly, these negative effects have been found to be most pronounced in students' achievement in and attitudes toward mathematics (Eccles et al., 1993).

The transition to middle school has a direct impact on a student's educational trajectory in mathematics due to the typically stratified nature of the courses to which students are assigned and the often strong performance focus of the teaching and learning that occurs. During the middle school years, students may be inequitably distributed among hierarchies of mathematics courses on the basis of race and economic background, becoming increasingly stratified within these tracks (Dauber, Alexander, & Entwisle, 1996). Emphasis on competition and individual success, which is particularly prevalent in mathematics courses, is not necessarily developmentally appropriate and has been shown to be a less than optimal approach to learning for many girls and students from diverse cultures (Eccles et al., 1993; Malloy & Malloy, 1998).

In addition, school procedures for placement decisions may not be uniformly applied, with students of low social economic status (SES) and minority students often inequitably kept from higher-level courses, in spite of assessed ability, and disproportionately recommended for lower-level courses (Dauber et al., 1996; Hallinan, 1994; Plata, Masten, & Trusty, 1999). The combined impact of this increase in differentiation by mathematics class, decrease in mathematics self-efficacy, use of developmentally inappropriate approaches to teaching, and beliefs regarding potential barriers and lack of support may lead to lower achievement levels and, therefore, lower grades among students, disproportionately impacting girls and minorities. This, then, impacts students' educational trajectories in mathematics for subsequent years and contributes to the underrepresentation of women and minorities in high-level mathematics coursework in high school and college.

Beginning in middle school, mathematics content and the mathematics course sequence become less fluid and less changeable. Once in a track, students' placement is not likely to change to a higher-ability placement unless there is parental intervention (Dauber et al., 1996; Hallinan, 1994; McGrath & Kuriloff, 1999a). This cumulative effect puts the transition to middle school and the mathematics sequence upon entry at a pivotal point for post-secondary schooling because of its effect on college opportunities, career development, and, ultimately, career possibilities. If, at any point in middle school, a student chooses or is forced to choose a lower-level mathematics course, it becomes significantly less likely the student will end up taking the upper-level high school mathematics courses required for admission to a 4-year college (Oakes, Gamoran, & Page, 1992). The importance of persistence in high school mathematics was demonstrated by Trusty and Niles (2003), whose analyses of NELS data from 1988 to 2000 showed a marked increase in the likelihood of college graduation with each mathematics course taken from advanced algebra and beyond.