To help educators meet the growing demands today's adolescents face, Rider University School of Education will offer a minor in middle school education starting next fall.

Over the past year, a team of Rider teacher education faculty played a fundamental role in developing the curriculum for the minor. "New Jersey and in fact, the entire country needs teachers committed to working with adolescents and knowledgeable about their specific learning needs," said Dr. Carol Brown, associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts, Education and Sciences at Rider. "I am very pleased that the faculty has taken seriously the task of designing such a high quality education program for middle school certification."

Education majors who opt for the six-credit minor will take four new courses: early adolescence, a methods course in a specialty field (English, mathematics, sciences and social studies), teaching in the inclusive middle school, and structure and culture of the middle school.

The School of Education has also received two major grants directed toward middle school initiatives. One is a two-year $300,000 grant which supports innovative clinical experiences for middle school programs. The other is a five-year $90,000 per year grant in tandem with Kean, William Paterson and Rowan Universities, which supports the development of middle school pre-service programs. "Our focus is to address the needs of adolescent learners and to develop methods courses specific to their learning needs," said Brown.

For more information, call (609) 895-5444.