The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.

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Dear FINE Member,

Here are this month's FINE member announcements. Please feel free to forward this information to friends and other education colleagues.

New on the FINE Website

We thank all of you who sent us information about promising practices, programs, and initiatives that engage parents in children's early learning and development. We will keep you updated about how we plan to features these ideas.

• Casebook: Preparing Educators to Involve Families: From Theory to Practice

  This new book, edited by Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP), prepares educators to partner effectively with the families of children in elementary school. Using a framework of ecological systems theory, it includes child development theories and teaching cases that reflect critical dilemmas in family–school–community relations, especially among families for whom poverty and cultural differences are daily realities.

• New Section of FINE Website: Family–School Partnership Conference Presentations

  We have added a new section to the Resources area of the FINE website for conference presentations that HFRP staff have made or conferences we have organized on topics related to family–school partnerships. Currently we have two conferences listed in this section:

  • Family, School, and Community Connections Symposium: New Directions for Research, Practice, and Evaluation

    We partnered with the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory to host this recent symposium on family, school, and community connections. We have made available the agenda, speaker bios, as well as transcripts and slides of the speakers' presentations, which cover topics related to student achievement, family involvement in middle and high school, diversity and cultural settings, school readiness, and assessing parent involvement.

  • Participatory Evaluation and Parent Engagement Institute

    HFRP Founder and Director, Heather Weiss, delivered the keynote address at this institute sponsored by Family Support America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In her address, Evaluating Family Support: Thinking Critically, Thinking Internationally, she described how evaluation can support learning, continuous improvement, and innovation.

• Research Digest: Conjoint Behavioral Consultation: A Model to Facilitate Meaningful Partnerships for Families and Schools

  Researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln studied the effectiveness of a behavioral intervention model where parents, educators, and service providers work collaboratively to address children's developmental needs.

• Research Digest: Perceived Academic Support From Parents, Teachers, and Peers: Relation to Hong Kong Adolescents' Academic Behavior and Achievement

  Jennifer Jun-Li Chen finds that perceived academic support from teachers and parents contributes indirectly to the academic achievement of Hong Kong students.

New HFRP Job

• Project Manager

  HFRP is looking for a Project Manager to work on our evaluation-related projects focused on children, youth, families, and communities, with management responsibilities in field operations, for select issues of our periodical The Evaluation Exchange, and for HFRP-wide strategic planning. The position is currently part-time (75% time) with a strong likelihood of increasing to full-time in spring 2005. To learn more about this position and how to apply, follow the link above.

Books and Reports

• Many Pathways to Literacy: Young Children Learning With Siblings, Grandparents, Peers and Communities

  Through studies grounded in home, school, community school, nursery, and church settings, this compilation explores the many ways children acquire literacy skills that are not typically recognized or valued in schools. The studies highlight how children skillfully draw from their varied cultural and linguistic worlds to make sense of new experiences. The book is available for purchase in electronic or print format from the publisher at the link above.

• Open to the Public: Speaking out on “No Child Left Behind”

  The Public Education Network (PEN) held a series of public hearings on No Child Left Behind to assess what its impact has been on students, families, schools, and community members and to explore how the perspectives and experiences of these individuals might inform and improve the law and its implementation. This report documents the hearings and provides messages for policymakers based on the findings.

• The Rewards of Parent Participation

  In the March issue of Educational Leadership, James Comer offers insights about overcoming the barriers to parental involvement in urban schools and describes how parent participation in School Development Program schools has often been a powerful force in improving the lives of parents themselves. The full article is available for purchase at the link above.

Website to Watch

• Parent Leader Blog (Web Log)

  KSA Plus Communications' Parent Leadership Group maintains a blog called Parent Leader Online. Parent Leader offers news, opinion, and resources for and about parent leaders who are becoming advocates for better schools and for educators who want to work with such parents.

Toolkits

• Developing a Collaborative Team Approach to Support Families and Community Connections With Schools: What Can School Leaders Do?

  This strategy brief from the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory provides school leaders with ideas and tools for fostering a school culture that welcomes collaborative partnerships between parents and staff.

• Collaborative Family–School Relationships for Children's Learning

  To help educators develop productive family–school relationships, the Virginia Department of Education developed this manual and study guide describing school-based practices to support parents in becoming partners in the effort to promote student learning and academic outcomes.

  Using Data as an Advocacy Tool

  This eight-page guide from KSA Plus Communications looks at how parents leaders can understand their school's data, identify which students are being well served and which students are not, and be able to ask the kinds of questions that lead to school improvement.

Upcoming Events

• Parent Leaders: An Untapped Resource in Education

  Join your peers from around the country in a 2-day seminar where you will learn best practices for planning, staffing, developing curriculum, recruiting, publicizing, and funding parent leadership programs. This seminar hosted by the Center for Parent Leadership at the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence will be held in Mobile, Alabama, on April 26 and 27.

• 5th Annual Conference for Building Strong School, Family, and Community Partnerships That Support Student Learning

  This conference will be held on June 8th at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, and is sponsored by the Institute for Responsive Education, Parent's Place, the Home for Little Wanderers, and Northeastern University School of Education. Choose from a variety of workshops that highlight local parent leadership and family engagement efforts from across New England.

• 2005 NCEA Conference: The Real Mandate: Educate and Fight for Social Justice

  Join parents, educators, community activists, and youth advocates at the 2005 conference of the National Coalition of Education Activists in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 21–24. Share models for public school change and organizing strategies and build ongoing networks with public school activists.

Funding Opportunity

• “No Parent Left Behind” Parent-Communication Grants

  SchoolMessenger and Edline are accepting proposals from schools for a free SchoolMessenger Desktop Calling System, free 1-year subscription to Edline, and free parent communication program support for 1 year. Special consideration will be given to schools where the SchoolMessenger system will be actively integrated into the school's parent involvement plan.

Contact Us

Have a problem with the website or questions and comments concerning our work? Send an email to fine@gse.harvard.edu.

Enjoy!

FINE - The Family Involvement Network of Educators