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.
March FINE Newsletter: 2003 Family Involvement Research Bibliography
March 2004
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
-
Bibliography of Family Involvement Research Published in 2003
We have updated our mid-year 2003 family involvement bibliography to cover all of 2003. It includes books, journal articles, dissertations and theses, reports, research briefs, and papers.
Commentary
- Toward a Strong Profession
In Education Week Ellen Condliffe Lagemann, Dean of Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, describes four ways in which education can become a stronger profession in order to better attract more “able, imaginative, and honorable people.”
Recent Books and Reports
- The Case for Parent Leadership
“Parents must become equal partners in education.” This report by KSA Plus Communications and the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence shows how parent leadership has grown as a nationwide movement, how it works in various cities and schools, and how readers can use it to improve their own schools.
- The Impact of Parental Involvement, Parental Support and Family Education on Pupil Achievement and Adjustment: A Review of the Literature
The U.K. Department for Education and Skills has prepared a review of English language research findings on the impact of parent involvement, parent support, and family education on student achievement. The research is separated into two categories: research on the impact of “spontaneous” parent involvement in education and research evaluating parent involvement programs and interventions. The report concludes that a large body of high quality research shows how spontaneous parent involvement promotes student achievement, but that the research evaluating interventions and programs has yet to demonstrate positive achievement outcomes from specific program activities.
-
Resiliency: What We Have Learned
In this new book from WestEd, Bonnie Benard summarizes more than a decade of research on resiliency and links key research findings to their applications in programs and movements that support positive youth development and resilience.
Surveys
-
Poll of Parents on “No Child Left Behind”: Summary of Survey Findings
The Results for American Campaign surveyed 699 parents of school-age children to assess their opinions of the NCLB plan for school reform. Results indicate that while American parents are supportive of the concept of NCLB, there is less support for specific features of the reform plan. Forty-five percent of parents opposed high stakes testing after hearing it defined and 34% of parents see NCLB as “punishing schools for failure instead of rewarding them for success.”
-
The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, 2003: An Examination of School Leadership
The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher looks at important elements of leadership in schools. Results show that parents are much less positive than principals about the quality and frequency of their interactions.
-
Survey of Parents of Children Attending School Within the Los Angeles Unified School District
According to this survey of 501 parents in the Los Angeles Unified School District, most parents feel welcome at their child’s school (93%) and a majority of parents (65%) say they are personally involved in community activities supporting their child’s education. Parents are less satisfied with how well schools are helping students reach their academic potential.
-
Changes in Children’s Well-Being and Family Environments: Snapshots of America’s Families III
Based on data from the 1997, 1999, and 2002 National Survey of America’s Families, this snapshot includes findings related to reading and storytelling in the home. Between 1997 and 2002, children ages 1 to 5 became more likely to participate in a cognitively stimulating, shared activity with their parents.
Journal Articles
-
Developing Parent Information Frameworks That Support College Preparation for Latino Students
The author explores the link between Latinos' low college-going rate and parents' lack of understanding about how high schools classify and track their children for college preparation. The author surveyed 92 Latino parents in three different California school districts. Most parents expected their child would go to college and were surprised to learn that their children had been placed or could be placed in curriculum tracks that made college entrance less likely. The author calls for better communication between schools and Latino families about students' academic preparations for college.
-
This study of 307 low-income, ethnic minority children and their primary caregivers revealed that the children of parents who actively promote learning in the home, have direct and regular contact with schools, and experience fewer barriers to involvement demonstrate positive engagement with their peers, adults, and learning.
Evaluation
-
This guide from the U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Evaluation offers tools to help educational practitioners distinguish practices supported by rigorous evidence from those that are not.
Websites to Watch
-
Teaching for Change: Building Social Justice, Starting in the Classroom
Teaching for Change provides teachers and parents with an extensive collection of resources and tools for integrating issues of social justice into classroom curricula and beyond. They also provide workshops, courses, and conferences for educators in the DC Metro area on multicultural education from an anti-racist perspective.
Resources
-
Building Trust With Schools and Diverse Families: A Foundation for Lasting Partnerships
This booklet from the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory examines issues of trust and family involvement, focusing specifically on relationships between diverse families and schools. It includes a summary of relevant research, a discussion of common obstacles to school-family partnerships, tips for reaching out to diverse families, and profiles of several current family involvement efforts in Northwest schools.
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