Introduction

What is the best configuration of grades for K-12 schooling? Is it an elementary school, followed by a middle school, followed by a four-year high school? Or are there advantages to a K-8 school, followed by a four-year high school? Which middle-school configuration better promotes social adjustment—grades six through eight, five through eight, seven through eight, or seven through nine? Are there advantages to alternative grade spans at the elementary level, such as K-3 and four through six? What is the function of a ninth-grade center? In which setting do sixth- or eighth-graders achieve best? Why do we have age-related grades?

Research has not provided definitive answers to the myriad possible questions about grade span, but the questions have never gone away. They are questions which arise whenever school reform, increasing or declining enrollment, or financial considerations bring about a reorganization of existing schools, the building of new schools, or consolidation of districts. As one article on the subject puts it, "Grade organization remains a controversial topic in American education as it has for at least 80 years" (Jenkins & McEwin, 1992).

A quick glance at the grade spans of schools in the Northwest region reveals a variety of configurations including traditional forms of grade organization. This variety reflects the fact that each community considers different factors when making grade span decisions and that no one grade configuration is right for all. Thus it is not the intent of this booklet to hold up any one grade configuration as superior, or to discuss in depth each of the grade configurations that exist. It is meant instead, to increase awareness and understanding of grade span as an issue, provide examples of ways schools have addressed concerns associated with particular grade spans, and suggest avenues for further inquiry.