Working with middle school children can be a challenge in and of itself. However, there appears to be more going on in the classroom than that which we can see, as educators. When we look into the faces of our pupils, we only see part of what's going on because our students are struggling to balance who they are as a member of a classroom group and who they are as a member of a peer group. All students want to be appreciated and enjoyed by others, so what happens when they aren't? This research paper takes a look at how the educator's role has changed over time. Understanding what makes a group function as a group, how students learn, what happens physiologically to learners as they learn, how grouping students in different ways affects achievement and development, and how understanding group dynamics can make a difference in achievement for students of all backgrounds is the focus of this paper.
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