Middle – High School Transition Research at Our School 

Our school is proud to be participating in a new study of the changes that students undergo during the transition from middle to high school. Early adolescence is already a time of intense physiological change; add an  increasing workload and the new pressure to earn grades that directly shape your college prospects. Scholarship in this area over the last decade indicates that transitioning to grade 9 is a major event in student’s lives, with significant long-term consequences.

This study out of the University of Sydney, Australia, uses a student questionnaire to investigate how the dynamic between students’ academic experiences and behaviors changes between grades 8 and 9, with a special emphasis on academic integrity, motivation, and learning strategy. The questionnaire is anonymous and individual students’ results will not be shared with the school. However, the aggregated data we receive should help clarify how we can provide future grade 8 students with a more positive and nurturing introduction to high school.

Parental consent forms for this research project, entitled Academic Integrity in Context, will be going home soon. Please read carefully through the attached information. We hope that all grade 8 and 9 students and parents will consider participating.