During adolescence, the need for social connection increases. Yet, fostering emotional closeness in relationships becomes more complex, as the need for autonomy also increases and social environments must adapt to become conducive to these seemingly competing needs. This complexity necessitates more research on what happens to close relationships during adolescence, so parents, scholars, and practitioners are better equipped to help individuals navigate the unique social atmosphere of adolescence. The current study draws upon multi-level modeling techniques to estimate growth models of Australian adolescents' closeness to parents and closeness to friends from ages 12-17 and examine predictors of these trajectories. Findings reveal that on average, adolescents' levels of closeness to parents exhibit a moderate decrease while remaining relatively high, and boys appear to have a closer relationship with their parents than girls throughout the period examined. Levels of closeness to friends similarly decline while remaining relatively high, with girls exhibiting both greater levels of closeness and a faster decrease than boys throughout the timeframe examined. These results are discussed in light of the current literature and recommendations for future studies are provided.

The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the relations between support, academic self-efficacy, and stress during the transition into middle school. Research suggests that early adolescents experience an increase in stress across the middle school transition (e.g., Chung, et al., 1998), due to a mismatch between the individuals' developmental needs and the environment (Eccles et al., 1993). Stress has been found to be a risk factor for mental health disorders among adolescents (Grant et al., 2003). The current study examined if teacher and classmate support and academic self-efficacy served as external and internal resources for buffering stress by analyzing data from 142 young adolescents from an economically and racially diverse longitudinal sample. The current study examined: (a) the relations between support from teachers and classmates, academic self-efficacy, and stress; (b) patterns of change across the middle school transition; (c) the extent to which support from teachers and classmates is associated with stress in fifth and sixth grades; (d) the extent to which academic self-efficacy moderated the relation between support and stress, and (e) whether there were group differences (i.e., gender, race, and/or gender x race). Teacher support was negatively associated with perceived stress during sixth grade, while classmate support was a not significant correlate. There was not significant change over time in any of the key variables (i.e., teacher and classmate support, academic self-efficacy, and perceived stress). Regression results indicated that teacher and classmate support served different roles as academic self-efficacy moderated the relations between classroom support and perceived stress among fifth grade students. Teacher support was negatively related to perceived stress among sixth grade students. The only group difference found was that female sixth grade students reported higher levels of teacher support than male students did. Implications for school psychologists and future directions for research are also addressed.

Technology use in high-minority, low-income middle school ELA classrooms is defined by traditional instructional practices (Applebee & Langer, 2013; Attewell, 2001; Boser, 2013; Cuban, 2001; Lankshear & Knobel, 2008), barriers to access (O’Dwyer et al., 2005; Purcell et al., 2013; Warschauer & Matuchniak, 2010), and inequalities in use (Banister & Reinhart, 2011; Beers, 2004; Gorski, 2009; Makinen, 2006; Powell, 2007; Reinhart et al., 2011; Dijk, 2003, 2006; Warschauer et al., 2004). This characterization, or grand narrative, of technology use is echoed and challenged by this narrative inquiry. Here the stories of two ELA teachers frequently using technology in instruction and working in a high-minority, low-income middle school are examined, guided by the following research puzzle: What might I learn about teaching with technology from two middle school ELA teachers utilizing technology in a high-minority, low-income school? In what ways might participants’ stories mirror or differ from the grand narrative of technology use in high-minority, low-income middle schools? In what ways might this inquiry expand general knowledge of technology use in high-minority, low-income, middle-level classrooms? The resulting narratives are considered in terms of culturally responsive teaching (Delpit, 1994, 1995; Gay, 2000; Irvine, 2002; 2003; Ladson-Billings, 2006), digital literacy (Gilster, 1997; Knobel & Lankshear, 2006; Martin, 2008), and stage-environment fit theory (Eccles & Midgely, 1989; Eccles et al., 1993; Eccles & Roeser, 2011). Findings from this inquiry suggest technology increases engagement and is a distraction, technology makes teaching easier, and barriers hinder technology use.

This longitudinal multiple methods study used an ethnographic approach to examine the development of early adolescents' psychology during pubertal and school transitions. It explored potential associations between attitudes to school, perceptions of school life and transfer, home and peer relations, and puberty over the course of a school year. It compared two groups of UK 11 and 12 year olds (Year 7), one in a middle school (age range 8-13 years) without transfer at age 11, and the other in a secondary school (11-16 years) where transfer from primary school had just occurred. Pupil attitudes to school were surveyed across the Year 7 cohort in each school at the beginning (N=252) and end (N=262) of the school year. The initial survey facilitated selection of two matched groups of target pupils (N=20) who were engaged in an active participation method designed to improve validity. Data on perceptions of school and growing up were gathered in 80 interviews, 40 audio diaries, 42 hours of participant observation and by 63 targeted observations across three school terms. An end of year survey assessed the attitudes of the target pupils and their year groups. Qualitative data were analysed inductively using grounded theory coding procedures which uncovered early adolescent needs that mismatched with many design features of secondary schooling. Of particular developmental offence were impersonal teachers and lessons that were non-practical, without opportunity for independent learning and unsupervised skills building and that were irrelevant to adolescents' career identities. Analysis of the quantitative survey data using multivariate procedures identified attitudinal factors congruent with previous research. Overall attitude to school was best predicted by perceptions of teachers and enjoyment of lessons rather than by adolescent developmental factors. Cluster analysis identified four pupil types validated by the target pupil findings. Of these the autonomy seekers had the most freedom outside of school and the greatest decline in attitudes across the year. The findings assisted generation of new theory incorporating concepts of maturity status markers and focal contexts. School transfer was found to impel an ecological transition across multiple developmental contexts which increased pupils' maturity self-perceptions, yielding mixed developmental implications. Using Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems framework as an analytical tool facilitated interpretation of the emergent themes in relation to Eccles & Midgley's (1989) US-based theory of 'Stage-Environment Fit'. The findings support the application of a modified Stage-Environment Fit theory in English schools.

Early adolescence is a critical time for examining academic motivation, specifically motivation to read (Hervey, 2013). In order to support self-determined motivation to read, students’ needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness must be met within the classroom context (Miller & Faircloth, 2014). Since classroom instructional practices are a key component of adolescents’ daily experiences in the classroom, research which investigates the influence of these practices on students’ self-determined motivation to read is needed. In addition, the perceptions of students and teachers regarding the degree to which classroom instructional practices meet students’ needs as well as the influence of classroom instructional practices on students’ self-determined motivation to read must be considered as the perceptions of these two groups of classroom stakeholders rarely fully converge (Delaney et al., 2014; Wang & Eccles, 2014). However, the field is lacking an established measure of both groups’ perceptions of classroom instructional practices and the degree to which they support students’ needs (i.e., competence, autonomy, relatedness) and self-determined (intrinsic) motivation to read. Therefore, this study sought to address this gap in the literature by developing and validating a measure with parallel teacher and student forms called the Language Arts Reading Practices Survey (LARPS). This measure assessed student and teacher perceptions of the degree to which classroom instructional practices in the language arts classroom support students’ needs for competence, autonomy, relatedness, and students’ self-determined motivation to read. The results of this study provide preliminary support for the validity of the student form of the LARPS, with less support for the teacher form of the measure. By assessing both student and teacher perceptions, the LARPS adds to the general understanding of specific instructional practices and how stakeholder groups view these practices regarding their ability to support students’ needs and motivation.