THIS EDITION OF THE NORTH CAROLINA MIDDLE SCHOOL JOURNAL: SHARING IDEAS FOR CLOSING THE "KNOWING-DOING GAP"

Welcome to the second issue of the North Carolina Middle School Journal online. The response to our first online issue has been enthusiastic and we hope to extend that momentum.

This issue offers eleven articles that illustrate success in closing the “knowing-doing gap.” Since the publication of The knowing-doing gap: How smart companies turn knowledge into action by Jeffrey Pfeiffer and Robert Sutton (Harvard Business School Publishing, 2000), the concept of narrowing the gap between what we know about successful practices and what we do to implement these practices has been a major issue in the corporate arena. Although we may not use this phrase as frequently in education, the articles in this issue show how some of our colleagues have found ways to put what they know about good teaching and good leadership into action.

In our Feature Section, we spotlight six reports of research into practice to improve literacy learning. Nancy Ruppert gives us practical strategies for infusing the spirit of “advisor-advisee” into language arts lessons. In “Why are we reading?” Merry Boggs shares insights from her efforts to help eighth grade students experience authentic literacy by “reading together differently.” Melissa Hedt and Jessy Kronenberg describe some of the ways that “bookclubs” promoted engagement among reluctant readers at Asheville Middle School. Cindy Wilson and Brian Kahn give us detailed suggestions for using poetry to teach the Holocaust. In “Boys and books,” Johna Faulconer, Jessica Grant and Melissa Matsevich zoom in on activities that encourage middle school boys to invest more energy in reading. We conclude this section with “Links to Literacy,” a column that is on of our regular features. In this edition, Johna Faulconer offers specific suggestions that will help administrators guide improvements in literacy learning.

Responses to our call for manuscripts resulted in four additional articles that that integrate knowing and doing. Sheryn Waterman tells us how she has found ways to put democracy in action in the classroom. Tarra Ellis shows us how middle school philosophy can guide accomplishments in urban schools. Gordon Toudt connects research and practice in integrating technology skills into the curriculum. In his report on leadership coaching, Vernon Farrington describes ways that administrators have guided meaningful school improvements.

We conclude this edition with a column that will become another regular feature. In “Focus on Teacher Education,” Jeanneine Jones offers suggestions for helping preservice teachers prepare for the realities of teaching, sharing a “scavenger hunt” activity that she has developed to jumpstart this transition.

Thanks for visiting our North Carolina Middle School Journal online. Please feel free to share your ideas for improving our journal or consider writing an article for us. You may reach me at strahan@email.wcu.edu. I would really like to hear from you.
David Strahan, Editor
Taft B. Botner Distinguished Professor of Elementary and Middle Grades Education,
Western Carolina University