As younger adolescents move from the smaller middle school setting to the larger and more diverse high school environment, many kids experience anxiety and worry about the shifting dynamics and expectations. According to researchers Mizelle, Phelan, Yu, and Davidson, “Young adolescents […] are concerned about being picked on and teased by older students, having harder work, making lower grades, and getting lost in a larger, unfamiliar school.”
Common Struggles for New 9th-Grade Students
As they move to the high school setting, many 9th-grade students commonly experience a significant decline in both grades and attendance. This often occurs as a result of the new social opportunities and the greater option of choices for young students, in addition to the pressures of fitting in and finding their own comfortable peer groups.
In addition, according to ERIC Digest, these students tend to “view themselves more negatively and experience an increased need for friendships.” This is a relatively universal experience for young adolescents, as studies reveal this to be true for even honors or “high achieving” students.
How Can You Help Keep Your Child on Track?
Transition Programs
To help young students transition to the new school setting, recent studies reveal that students who take part in middle school “transition programs” are able to move through the shifting school settings with far less of a struggle.
As Eric Digest explains, “Research has found […] that when middle school students took part in a high school transition program with several diverse articulation