Middle Schooling

UnitedFuture supports the concept of “Middle Schooling” that targets years 7 – 10 students at both Intermediate and Secondary Schools.

We support many of the recommendations of the New Zealand Association of Middle Schools (NZAIMS) that there is ongoing investment and development of middle years schooling in New Zealand. We understand this to mean that:

• Teachers working in this sector need to be well qualified in subject areas, able to work across subjects and well qualified to meet the needs of emerging adolescents.
• Students in this age group are most at risk of disengaging from school than any other group and therefore need school to be as focussed on their developmental and affective needs as on their academic achievement.
• Parents often find this season of parenting one of the most challenging and so middle schooling needs to consider the additional stresses that often characterise the parent/child relationship.