Middle Schoolers Getting Prepped for College

Middle school students are being asked to do much more than take prealgebra these days; they’re being asked to start launching their future careers.

A rise in college- and career-readiness programs targeted at middle schoolers, particularly disadvantaged ones, has been spurred by mounting research that shows middle school is a key time to improve the academics and attitudes needed to succeed in high school, college, and beyond.

But successful programs aimed at the middle grades cannot focus solely on mapping out coursework and taking standardized tests, educators say. They have to reach young adolescents in innovative ways that combine the efforts of parents, schools, and the community to set those students on a path to a better future. Students have to especially feel they are...