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Gender and Race as Variables in
Psychosocial Adjustment to
Middle and High School
PATRICK AKOS
JOHN P. GALASSI
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
ABSTRACT School transition research indicates that nega-
tive outcomes (e.g., decreases in self-esteem and academic
motivation) occur for a number of students in transition.
Although data are not consistent, gender and race tend to play
a role in school transition outcomes. The authors investigated
gender and race as variables in 6th- and 9th-grade students’
psychosocial adjustment (e.g., perceptions of difficulty of tran-
sition and connectedness to school) following a recent school
transition and in persons who they perceived as helpful in the
transition process. Results suggest differences by gender for
feelings of connectedness to middle and high school following
the transition. Latino students perceived the transition to mid-
dle school as significantly more difficult than did Caucasian
and African American students. Additional findings and impli-
cations are presented.
Key words: gender and race, psychosocial adjustment, tran-
sition to middle and high school
M ost education researchers have suggested thatschool transitions play an important role in thedevelopmental trajectory of students (Eccles et
al., 1993; Simmons &. Blyth, 1987; Wigfield, Eccles, Mac
Iver, Reuman, &. Midgley, 1991). The individual or per-
sonal transformations that students undergo during puher-
ty and school changes are extensive and frequently disrup-
tive. Researchers have identified declines in academic
performance (Blyth, Simmons, & Carlton-Ford, 1983),
academic motivation (Eccles et al.), self-esteem (Simmons
& Blyth), extracurricular participation (Seidman, Allen,
Aher, Mitchell, &. Feinman, 1994), and perceived support
from school staff (Seidman et al.) as well as increases in
daily hassles (Seidman et a l ) , as some of the negative
effects of school transitions.
However, only a modest number of researchers have
examined the influence of demographic variables in school
transitions. Several researchers suggested that girls suffer
greater losses in self-esteem compared with boys during the
transition to middle school (Blyth et al., 1983; Eccles et al.,
1993). Those findings may be due to the fact that girls
experience more peer upheaval or that they experience
more distress than do boys because of the greater salience
of their peer networks. The combination of physical and
social transitions that girls experience from elementary to
middle school also may contribute to their distress.
Because girls typically mature earlier than boys (Eccles et
al.), they often make a distinctive physical transition (e.g.,
menstruation) into puberty simultaneously with a school
transition. Thus, the combination of and feelings about the
two transitions—physical and school—may heighten the
negative outcomes that some girls experience as they enter
middle school.
Researchers also have demonstrated that girls experience
more depression than do boys over the transition from ele-
mentary to middle school (Blyth et al., 1983; Hirsch &
Rapkin, 1987). Moreover, Diemert (1992) found that boys
reported a lack of assistance with academic needs, whereas
girls reported a lack of assistance with social needs in the
middle school transition. In the high school transition,
girls exhibited more concerns in general and more intense
social and academic concerns, whereas boys were con-
cerned particularly about having longer class periods, par-
ticipating in sports, and violence from gangs (Maute,
1991). Although most of the transition research has sug-
gested differential outcomes based on gender, some
researchers failed to replicate these differences (Seidman et
a l , 1994; Wampler, Munsch, & Adams, 2002).
In addition to gender, race has been another focus of tran-
sition research. Several researchers suggested that minority
status may intensify negative transition outcomes (Cauce,
Hannan, & Sargeant, 1992; Mosely &. Lex, 1990). Seidman
and colleagues (1994) speculated that urban minority stu-
dents often are located in overcrowded classrooms in large
schools that are entrenched in red tape. They hypothesized
that environmental conditions of high poverty and less
space intensify the contextual transition and can potential-
ly lead to more detrimental effects such as disproportionally
high rates of education failure for urban minority youth
(Seidman et a l ) .
Address correspondence to Patrick Akos, CB #3500, The Univer-
sity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3500.
(E-mail: pta@unc.edu)
102
November/December 2004 [Vol. 98(No. 2)] 103
Gutman and Midgley (2000) also investigated transition
effects on African American students and found significant
achievement losses from elementary to middle school. Sim-
mons, Black, and Zhou (1991) also suggested that grade
declines may be more severe for African American students
than for European American students. Simmons and col-
leagues discovered that African American students showed
greater decreases in grade point average (GPA) and more
dislike for school after the elementary to middle school
transition. Maute (1991) found that in high school, Asian
students and those defined as “Other” (not White, Black,
or Latino) demonstrated more intense high school con-
cerns than did other students. Students labeled “Other”
were concerned especially about being with children of
other races and being liked by others. In addition, gender
and racial differences in transition concerns varied accord-
ing to the school attended (Maute).
Wampler and colleagues (2002) examined racial differ-
ences in GPA trajectories during the transition to junior
high. They discovered that grade trajectories differed for
race but not for gender. Specifically, African American stu-
dents’ GPAs remained steady over the transition, Cau-
casian students experienced slight declines, and Latino stu-
dents faced steep declines with some rebound effect near
the end of the school year.
Although many questions remain, existing research
seems to indicate that race and gender influence percep-
tions and outcomes of school transitions; however, the rea-
son is unclear. One possibility might concern a student’s
level of engagement in school or connectedness to school.
Eccles and colleagues (1993), for example, suggested that
school engagement might serve as a protective factor
against transitional problems. Also, Osterman’s (2000)
review of research revealed that students’ connectedness to
school or sense of belonging relates to a host of outcome
variables including academic attitudes, achievement,
attendance, participation in school activities, and dropping
out of school. Thus, school connectedness is a variable that
may affect the likelihood of a successful school transition as
well as serve as an indicator of the actual success of that
transition. Moreover, it seems likely that school transitions
might undermine or disrupt students’ sense of connected-
ness to school, and this impact might not be equivalent
across gender and race.
In addition to feelings of connectedness, students’ over-
all perceptions of the difficulty of the transition also seem
to reflect their adjustment to a new school. Thus, students’
assessment of the transition experience should provide
insight into the extent to which they have adapted to the
new school. Moreover, the outcome research reviewed in
the previous paragraphs suggests that the difficulty of mid-
dle and high school transitions likely differs across gender
and race.
Finally, if school transitions are difficult for many stu-
dents, who do the students find most supportive during
these times? Given that transitions often cause a disruption
of social networks at the very time they are important
(Barone, Aguirre-Deandreis, & Trickett, 1991) and that
previous research indicates that school transition outcomes
vary as a function of gender and race, it seems likely that
the persons who students perceive as most helpful also
would be influenced by these variables. Determining who
different groups of students find helpful during transitions
should provide practitioners with useful information to
facilitate more positive school transition experiences for all
students.
To develop effective school transition programming,
school personnel may need to consider the influence of
race and gender as variables in the transition process.
Therefore, we explored those variables in students’ psy-
chosocial adjustment to middle and high school transi-
tions. Perceptions of transition difficulty and of school con-
nectedness served as gauges of adjustment to the new
school because adjustment has been a significant factor in
the developmental pathways of students. Moreover, the
sources of support that different groups of students find
helpful in transitions have rather immediate consequences
in the way that students approach school as well as in the
implications for future school transition programming by
school personnel.
The primary research question of the study was: Are race
and gender significant variables in (a) overall student per-
ception/evaluation of the difficulty of school transitions,
(b) feelings of connectedness to the new school, and (c)
persons who are perceived as most helpful during the tran-
sition experience?
Method
Participants
All of the students came from one middle school and one
high school in a medium-sized, southeastern school district.
The middle school participants included 173 sixth-grade
students (approximately 72% of the sixth-grade class). The
sample included 83 hoys (48%), 86 girls (49.7%), and 4
students (2.3%) who did not provide information about
gender. By race, the student sample included 57.2% Cau-
casian (n = 99), 19.7% African American (n = 34), 8.7%
Asian American (n = 15), 8.1% Latino (n = 14), 4% mul-
tiracial (n = 7), and 2.3% (n = 4) unspecified. The sample
was reflective of the entire sixth-grade population in terms
of race (57% Caucasian, 23% African American, 9% Asian
American, 9% Latino, and 3% multiracial) and gender
(55% boys, 45% girls).
The high school sample comprised 320 ninth-grade stu-
dents (approximately 71% of the ninth-grade class) in a
single high school. The sample included 47.8% boys (n =
153), 50.3% girls (n = 161), and 1.9% unspecified (n = 6).
The racial composition of the sample was 76.3% Caucasian
(n = 244), 10.3% African American (n = 33), 5.6% Asian
American (n = 18), 3.4% Latino (n = 11), 2.2% multiracial
(n = 7), and 1.9% unspecified (n = 6). The research sample
104 The Journal of Educational Research
again represented the high school population (n = 1,586)
in terms of race and gender.
The middle school and high school were part of a medium-
sized southern school district that included eight elementary
schools, four middle schools, and two high schools. The mid-
dle school drew students primarily from three of the elemen-
tary schools; the high school attracted its students primarily
from two of the middle schools. The middle school was in its
first year of operation. Overall, the school district could be
characterized as high performing—over 90% of the students
attended postsecondary education on a regular basis.
Instrument
We developed the questionnaires for the sixth grade and
ninth grade to tap context-relevant considerations and stu-
dent perceptions unique to each of the transitions. The
School Transition Questionnaire (STQ) is a retrospective
measure of student perceptions over the course of the tran-
sition (a copy of the STQ may be obtained from the first
author). The questionnaire assessed a variety of informa-
tion about the transition, including students’ (a) overall
feelings about the difficulty of the transition, (b) sense of
connectedness to the new school, and (c) persons who
were most helpful to them during the transition.
We used a 4-point, Likert-type response format (e.g..
How was the move from middle school to high school for
you?) to capture students’ overall feelings about the transi-
tion. The response choices were (1) difficult, (2) somewhat
difficult, (3) somewhat easy, and (4) easy. School connected-
ness is a variable that assesses a student’s integration and
feelings of belonging to school. Extensive research has
demonstrated that school connectedness is an important
variable in school success (see Osterman, 2000 for a review
of this literature). In this study, connectedness questions
included feeling (a) close to other students, (h) a part of
school, (c) that teachers care about students, and (d) happy
at school. We used a 5-point, Likert-type response format:
response choices were (1) strongly disagree, (2) disagree, (3)
neither agree nor disagree, (4) agree, and (5) strongly agree.
The questions were adapted from the National Longitudi-
nal Study of Adolescent Health (1998), a study undertak-
en in response to a mandate by the U.S. Congress in the
NIH Revitalization Act of 1993. Coefficient alpha for the
4-item connectedness measure in this study was .72 for the
high school data and .71 for the middle school data.
Students also were assessed about perceived helpfulness
of significant persons during the transition. Students are
influenced by a variety of persons in different systems in
their life. Akos (2002) and Arowosafe and Irvin (1992) dis-
covered that significant persons in the school environment
provide support and information to students during school
transitions. To determine who was most helpful in school
adjustment, students rated a variety of persons including
parents, peers, other family members, older students, coun-
selors, and other adults at the school. The students used a
4-point, Likert-type scale: response choices were (1) not
helpful, (2) somewhat helpful, (3) helpful, and (4) very helpful.
Students also had the option of adding persons to the list
and rating them.
Procedure
The STQ was administered during the fall semester to all
sixth- and ninth-grade students at the participating
schools. Approximately 72% of the middle school and 71%
of the high school students chose to participate in the
study. Homeroom or home-based teachers administered the
questionnaires; no incentives were given for participation.
Each questionnaire was precoded so that school personnel
could not identify student responses. Students returned
questionnaires anonymously in each classroom, and they
were collected by a school counselor on site and delivered
to the researchers. The research team worked with school
personnel to gather demographic data for the participating
students by precoded numbers. Researchers matched gen-
der and race to questionnaire responses by precoded identi-
fication numbers.
Research Design and Data Analysis
Data were analyzed separately for the middle and high
school samples. Gender and race represented independent
or predictor variables, whereas overall perceptions of the
transition, connectedness to school, and the person most
helpful in the transition represented dependent or criteri-
on variables in this causal-comparative study. A 2 x 4
(Gender x Race) analysis of variance (ANOVA) was
planned for data analysis. Because of some low cell sizes,
that analysis was contraindicated. As a result, we complet-
ed separate univariate ANOVAs to analyze gender and
race differences on the variables. When we found signifi-
cant F values, we used post-hoc comparisons with Tukey’s
Honestly Significant Differences Test to explain differ-
ences among racial categories. Because we performed mul-
tiple tests to determine who was most helpful in the tran-
sition, we used the Bonferroni adjustment to control for
Type 1 errors (a = .05/3 = .016).
Results
Tables 1 and 2 present means and standard deviations for
the perceived difficulty of the transition, connectedness,
and helpful person variables disaggregated by gender and
race.
Overall, the results revealed that students did not per-
ceive that the transition to middle school (M = 3.00,
SD = .96) or high school (M = 3.12, SD = .86) was partic-
ularly difficult (1 = difficult to 4 = easy). Students also felt
strongly connected in both middle school (M = 15.02,
SD = 3.23) and high school (M = 14.98, SD = 2.60) to the
new school after the transition (possible range, 4-20).
November/December 2004 [Vol. 98(No. 2)] 105
TABLE 1. Disaggregated Means and Standard
Deviations for Perceptions of Difficulty, Connectedness,
and Helpful Others in Transition to Middle School
Question
Overall difficulty
Boys
Girls
Caucasians
African Americans
Latinos
Asians
Multiracial students
Connectedness
Boys
Cirls
Caucasians
African Americans
Latinos
Asians
Multiracial students
Helpful persons
Parents
Other family
Students
Older students
Counselors
Other adults
M
3.00
2
.96
3.09
3.13
3
.15
2.00
2.71
2
.86
15.02
14.46
15
.52
15.23
14.15
14.63
15.50
14.86
3.14
2.44
2.84
2.14
2.23
2
.22
SD
.96
.11
.10
.16
.16
.27
.29
.51
3.23
.41
.32
.29
.69
1.67
.73
1.61
1.03
1.03
.98
1.08
1.02
.99
TABLE 2. Disaggregated Means and Standard
Deviations for Perceptions of Difficulty, Connectedness,
and Helpful Others in Transition to High School
Question
Overall difficulty
Boys
Girls
Caucasians
African Americans
Latinos
Asians
Multiracial students
Connectedness
Boys
Girls
Caucasians
African Americans
Latinos
Asians
Multiracial students
Helpful persons
Parents
Other family
Students
Older students
Teachers
Counselors
Other adults
M
3.12
3.08
3.13
3.14
3.26
2.78
2.69
2.83
14.98
15.65
14.43
15.04
15.16
15.22
14.50
14.50
2.56
2.56
2.56
2.56
2.23
1.94
1.91
SD
.86
.07
.07
.05
.15
.36
.34
.48
2.60
.19
.22
.17
.48
.52
.58
.72
.99
1.13
.92
1.00
.89
.88
.87
Parents (M = 3.14, SD = L03), followed by other students
(M = 2.84, SD = .98) and other family (M = 2.44,
SD = 1.15), were reported as most helpful for middle
school students in transition. For high school students,
other students (M = 2.77, SD = .92), then parents
(M = 2.56, SD = .99) and older students (M = 2.34,
SD = 1.00) were rated as most helpful. The range was
1 = not helpful to 4 = very helpful.
Gender as a Variable in School Transitions
Gender was not a significant variable in students’ over-
all perception of the difficulty of the transition (e.g., mid-
dle school girls, M = 3.04, SD = .93; middle school boys,
M = 2.95, SD = 1.00; high school girls, M = 3.13, SD = .90;
high school boys, M = 3.10, SD = .83). Yet, gender was a
significant variable in students’ feelings of connectedness
to school in both transitions. In middle school, girls (M =
15.6, SD = 2.7) felt more connected to school than did
boys (M = 14.4, SD = 3.6), F(l, 157) = 4.59, p = .034. In
contrast to middle school, boys (M = 15.7, SD = 2.2) felt
significantly more connected in high school than did girls
(M = 14.4, SD = 2.8), F(l, 300) = 18.52, p = .001.
Gender also was a significant variable in determining
who was most helpful during the transition to high school.
Significant differences emerged for family other than par-
ents, F(l, 302) = 13.07, p < .001, and students, F(l, 303) =
18.61, p < .001. Boys reported that family other than par- ents (M = 2.55, SD = 1.13) and students (M = 3.00, SD = .84) were more helpful than that reported by girls (M = 2.09, SD = 1.08; M = 2.56, SD = .94) in high school. No other significant differences were revealed for gender.
Race as a Variable in School Transitions
No significant differences were found for race in feelings
of connectedness to school. Yet, a significant difference
emerged for race in the perception of how difficult the tran-
sition to middle school was, F(4, 160) = 4.54, p = .002.
Post-hoc tests (Tukey HSD) indicated that Latino students
(M = 2.07, SD = .25) perceived the transition as more dif-
ficult as compared with Caucasian (M = 3.12, SD = .09,
p = .001) and African American (M = 3.15, SD = .16,
p = .003) students.
Also in middle school, several differences were found for
persons who were most helpful in the transition. Statistically
significant differences emerged for race in terms of middle
school counselors, F(4, 153) = 7.48, p < .001, and family
other than parents, F(4, 156) = 3.81, p = .006. In post-hoc
tests (Tukey HSD), Latino students reported that middle
school counselors (M = 3.24, SD = .83) and family other than
parents (M = 3.46, SD = .66) were more helpful than that
reported by Caucasian (M = 1.95, SD = .92 for counselors;
M = 2.32, SD = 1.15 for other family) and Asian American
106 The Journal of Educational Research
(M = 2.00, SD = .88 for counselors; M = 2.20, SD = .94 for
other family) students. In addition. Latino students reported
that other family members (M = 3.46, SD = .66) were more
helpful than that reported by African American students
(M = 2.39, SD = 1.20). Finally, African American students
reported that middle school counselors (M = 2.61, SD = 1.09)
were more helpful to them as compared with reports by Cau-
casian students (M = 1.95, SD = .92).
In high school, significant differences also were found for
race for help from high school counselors, F(5, 297) = 3.54,
p = .004. Latino students (M = 2.80, SD = .27) reported
that high school counselors were more helpful compared
with reports by Caucasian students (M = 1.86, SD = .06).
No other significant differences were found for race in
terms of perceptions or who was helpful during the transi-
tion for the middle or high school sample.
Discussion
Whereas Eccles and colleagues (1993), Seidman and col-
leagues (1994), and Simmons and Blyth (1987) reported
negative outcomes for school transitions, students in this
study perceived the transition as somewhat easy. Study par-
ticipants also demonstrated a strong connection to school
and found a variety of school personnel and other persons
helpful during school transitions. The contextual nature of
the school district (e.g., high performing) may be reflected
in the perceived difficulty of the transition in this study
because our results support those from previous research
(Anderman, Maeher, & Midgley, 1999; Crockett, Peterson,
Graber, Schulenberg, & Ebata, 1989) that suburban stu-
dents experience fewer adverse effects in school transitions
than do urban students. Implications of race and gender as
variables in transition adjustment are discussed in the fol-
lowing paragraphs.
Gender
The results of this study demonstrate that girls felt more
connected to school than did boys after transition to mid-
dle school. Although the stronger connection to school
may suggest more positive adaptation or orientation to
middle school for girls than for boys, these findings seem
incongruent with previous research (Blyth et al., 1983;
Eccles et al., 1993) stating that self-esteem declines for
girls. Therefore, these findings raise several questions: Do
girls experience a stronger connection to middle school
because of the contextual nature of elementary and middle
schools? For example, does the presence of multiple female
models in elementary and middle school allow girls to feel
more connected to school? Academic outcomes were not
measured in this study, but potentially, feelings of connect-
edness may relate directly to academic outcomes in transi-
tion. The lower feelings of connectedness for boys in this
study may provide a possible explanation for the findings of
previous studies that suggest that boys suffer more distinct
academic declines in the transition to middle school
(Chung, Elias, & Schneider, 1998; Elias et al., 1992).
Osterman (2000) demonstrated that a relationship exists
between connectedness or belonging and academic out-
comes. Perhaps boys’ academic struggles caused by the tran-
sition to middle school are related to feelings of connect-
edness to the new school. Boys may feel less connected to
the new school and, therefore, might not apply themselves
as fully academically as do girls. At the same time, con-
nectedness may be an adjustment variable that does not
capture the decline in self-esteem of girls in transition.
Those relationships should be examined in future research.
In contrast to middle school transition, boys felt signif-
icantly more connected than did girls after the transition
to high school. Although that finding may reflect a
cohort effect for the current sample, the results also may
indicate more positive adaptation or orientation for boys
at the high school level. Fewer researchers have investi-
gated gender differences in outcomes for high school tran-
sition as compared with middle school transition. Yet,
these findings may be reflective of Maute’s (1991) finding
that girls exhibit more concerns in general and more
intense social and academic concerns than do boys in the
transition to high school. Although the connection to
school is strong over the transition to middle school, the
peer upheaval and psychological distress experienced by
girls in the transition to and over the course of middle
school (Blyth et al., 1983; Crockett et al., 1989; Eccles et
al., 1993; Eenzel, 1989) may present later in their feeling
less connected after the transition to high school.
Researchers need to examine the relationship between
ecological factors (e.g., extracurricular opportunities and
participation); feelings of connectedness, self-esteem,
achievement, and motivation; as well as effective ways to
connect students in the transition to a new school.
One common way to help students connect to school
may be through enhanced social support. Barone and col-
leagues (1991) suggested that that type of support may be
particularly important during transition because social net-
works are usually disrupted and in flux at this time. The
findings for connectedness in this study may be indicative of
the gender differences in who appears helpful during school
transitions. Whereas girls reported that family other than
parents were more helpful at their transition into middle
school, the finding was reversed when they entered high
school. Even more significant, boys reported that students
were significantly more helpful in the transition to high
school than girls reported. Elias and colleagues’ (1992) find-
ings of the salience of peer networks in middle school and
Chung and colleagues’ (1998) findings of more peer-related
problems for girls in middle school may culminate in lower
perceived support from peers during the transition to high
school. That lack of perceived social support also may relate
to lower feelings of connectedness to school and highlight
an important developmental need for girls when they move
to high school. Programs like peer mentoring, use of
November/December 2004 [Vol. 98(No. 2)] 107
students in transition programs, and building supportive
peer cultures may be instrumental in helping girls feel more
connected to high school.
Race
Latino students perceived that the transition to middle
school was significantly more difficult than did Caucasian
and African American students. The results of this study
may be reflective of Wampler and colleagues’ (2002) find-
ing that Latino students experience a significant decline in
GPA during the transition to middle scbool. Although
GPA was not examined in this study, the overall perception
of the transition difficulty may reflect or be an indicator of
difficult academic adjustment demonstrated by Latinos in
previous researcb. One also sbould consider tbe findings
(perception of difficulty of transition) and previous researcb
(GPA declines) in ligbt of cultural differences tbat may cre-
ate specific cballenges for Latino students in transition.
Tbe results of tbis study and previous researcb (Wampler
et a l , 2002) suggest tbat Latino students, many of wbom
were not born in tbis country, may need particular atten-
tion during tbe transition to middle scbool. Wampler and
colleagues speculated tbat peer culture pressures and values
and traditions in Latino culture migbt increase tbe strug-
gles tbat tbose students experience in transition. For exam-
ple. Latino students may experience more significant lan-
guage barriers, and Latino families may believe tbat it is not
appropriate to be involved in matters related to scbool
(McCall-Perez, 2000). In addition, cognitive and linguistic
demands are greater in secondary scbools as compared witb
elementary scbools. In secondary scbools, students must
understand and integrate bodies of knowledge (Lucas,
2000). Tbe gap between language and literacy skills
between Latino students and families and majority teachers
may create additional barriers to acbievement in tbe more
demanding secondary scbools (Osterling, Violand-
Sancbez, & von Vacano, 1999).
Tbe cultural effects found in tbis study also may be
reflected in tbe fact tbat tbe Latino students reported tbat
middle scbool counselors and family otber tban parents
were more belpful than that reported by Caucasian and
Asian students. McCall-Perez (2000) reported tbat stu-
dents witb limited Englisb proficiency are counselor depen-
dent for scbool success because counselors contribute to
more positive student outcomes, placement, credit bours
earned, and smootber transitions to bigb scbool. It also may
be useful to include extended family to belp facilitate stu-
dent transition and adjustment to middle and bigb scbool.
For example, scbools migbt offer bilingual evening transi-
tion programs witb cbildcare to enable families and scbool
personnel to belp facilitate Latino students’ transition.
Scbools also migbt offer programs delivered by diverse para-
professionals wbo can bridge language and cultural barriers
effectively (Lee, 2001). Lucas (2000) recommended tbat
scbool personnel sbould belp Latino students and families
understand and negotiate tbe U.S. system of education
(e.g., grading, programs, placement, parent involvement).
In contrast to tbe middle scbool findings, race was not a
significant factor in tbe perception of transition difficulty.
Positive interventions by counselors and otbers during tbe
transition and/or tbe small sample of Latino students in tbe
bigb scbool migbt bave made differences difficult to detect.
It also is possible tbat Latino students migbt recover from
initial difficulties in tbe transition to middle scbool and feel
more successful by tbe time tbey make tbe transition to bigb
scbool. Altbougb Blytb and colleagues (1983) suggested tbat
multiple transitions (e.g., elementary to middle to bigb
scbool) exacerbate negative outcomes of transitions, perhaps
Latino students are unique in that learning, and adjusting to
tbe U.S. education system contributes to a less difficult expe-
rience in tbe second transition. A more likely possibility,
however, with the graduation rate of Latino students near
57% (Narrid-Lacey &. Spencer, 2000), is that many of tbe
Latino students wbo would bave experienced difficulty witb
tbe bigh scbool transition bave already dropped out of
scbool. Future researcb is clearly needed to understand tbe
specific transition effects for Latino students in middle and
bigb scbool.
Limitations
Tbe results of tbis study sbould be considered in ligbt of
several limitations. First, data were collected at only one
point after tbe completion of tbe transition. We examined
students’ adjustment to a new level of scbool, but longitu-
dinal designs may capture variables tbat influence adjust-
ment prior to tbe transition. Also, one sbould interpret tbe
data as relevant to tbe context of tbe academic acbieve-
ment of students in a district in wbicb a large majority pro-
gressed to postsecondary education. Researcbers sbould
replicate similar procedures in a variety of districts to deter-
mine wbetber race and gender effects are common across a
variety of scbool contexts. Altbougb no district is repre-
sentative of all districts, our results may be particularly
important because of tbe intense academic expectations of
students in tbe participating district. Learning bow to facil-
itate successful scbool transitions and scbool adjustment
for Latino students in tbe midst of bigb academic expecta-
tions may be extremely informative and useful for promot-
ing acbievement for all students.
Conclusion
TD summarize, tbe results of tbis study support previous
researcb tbat suggests tbat gender and race are influential
variables in scbool transitions and bigbligbt potential
differences in transition programming needed for differ-
ent groups of students. Tberefore, it may be important to
consider gender in assisting students’ adjustment to
scbool. Altbougb orientation programs may provide tbe
necessary procedural (e.g., bow to register for classes) and
108 The Journal of Educational Research
organizational adjustment (e.g., how to navigate the new
school) assistance for all students, researchers who inves-
tigate transition programs may need to attend to gender
differences in specific needs regarding personal/social and
academic adjustment. Perhaps those researchers should
further examine the needs of boys when they transfer to
middle school so as to foster stronger feelings of connect-
edness (e.g., extracurricular activities, male models) that
may help prevent boys’ achievement declines. Similarly,
researchers should further investigate girls’ needs when
they transfer to high school to build stronger feelings of
connectedness. Perhaps education professionals can
facilitate more effective petsonal/social adjustment to
high school with programs like peer mentoting and sys-
tematic efforts to improve female peer cultures so that
girls also find other students helpful during transition.
It also may be useful to offer specific programming for
Latino students and families. The transition may be an
influential factor in Latino students’ success in school;
research has demonstrated that student engagement is a
predictor of achievement for Latino students (Lucas, 2000;
Wampler et al., 2002). The transition to middle school may
be a key point in the developmental trajectoty of Latino
students that can be used to prevent high rates of educa-
tional failure and dropping out. Finally, it is important that
students capitalize on social support in the transition to a
new school. Specifically in this study, school counselots,
other students, and family other than parents appear to be
most useful in helping minotity students adjust to school.
NOTE
We thank the Research Triangle Schools Partnership (RTSP) and the
Chapel Hill Carrhoro City Schools for financial assistance with this
research. We appreciate Pat Harris, Tori Lunetta, and Annie Reed for
invaluahle feedhack and help with the research. We also thank Laura
Blake, Kelley Dull, Jessica Thompson, and Sarah Doherty for preparing
questionnaires and inputting the data.
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HOW TO CRITICALLY EVALUATE THE QUALITY OF A RESEARCH ARTICLE?
When considering a research idea, we are bound to rely on previous findings on the topic. Work done in the field constructs the foundation for our research and determines its course and value. Inaccurate findings may lead to imprecise applications and end in further fallacies in your own new scientific knowledge that you construct. In order to set a solid basis for research on any topic and to prevent multiplication of misinformation, it is crucial to to critically evaluate existing scientific evidence. It is important to know which information can be regarded as plausible.
So what’s the criteria to determine whether a result can be trusted? As it is taught in the first classes in psychology, errors may emerge from any phase of the research process. Therefore, it all boils down to how the research has been conducted and the results presented.
Meltzoff (2007) emphasizes the key issues that can produce flawed results and interpretations and should therefore be carefully considered when reading articles. Here is a reminder on what to bear in mind when reading a research article:
Research question
The research must be clear in informing the reader of its aims. Terms should be clearly defined, even more so if they’re new or used in specific non-spread ways. You as a reader should pay particular attention should to errors in logic, especially those regarding causation, relationship or association.
Sample
To provide trustworthy conclusions, a sample needs to be representative and adequate. Representativeness depends on the method of selection as well as the assignment. For example, random assignment has its advantages in front of systematic assignment in establishing group equivalence. The sample can be biased when researchers used volunteers or selective attrition. The adequate sample size can be determined by employing power analysis.
Control of confounding variables
Extraneous variation can influence research findings, therefore methods to control relevant confounding variables should be applied.
Research designs
The research design should be suitable to answer the research question. Readers should distinguish true experimental designs with random assignment from pre-experimental research designs.
Criteria and criteria measures
The criteria measures must demonstrate reliability and validity for both, the independent and dependent variable.
Data analysis
Appropriate statistical tests should be applied for the type of data obtained, and assumptions for their use met. Post hoc tests should be applied when multiple comparisons are performed. Tables and figures should be clearly labelled. Ideally, effect sizes shou
ld be included throughout giving a clear indication of the variables’ impact.
Discussion and conclusions
Does the study allow generalization? Also, limitations of the study should be mentioned. The discussion and conclusions should be consistent with the study’s results. It’s a common mistake to emphasizing the results that are in accordance with the researcher’s expectations while not focusing on the ones that are not. Do the authors of the article you hold in hand do the same?
Ethics
