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,

Welcome back to a new school year! The FINE member monthly announcement is back after a summer break. Please feel free to forward this information to your friends and other education colleagues.

Professional Development

• Professional Development Institute: Closing the Achievement Gap

  From November 9–11, Harvard Family Research Project will present Closing the Achievement Gap: Linking Families, Schools, and Communities at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE). Designed to give school, district, and community leaders strategies for tackling the achievement gap and fostering learning for all children, the institute will feature our new complementary learning approach—a comprehensive model that fosters partnerships between families, schools, and other nonschool supports. Find out more about the institute and register at the link above or by calling HGSE Programs in Professional Education at 1-800-545-1849.

New From FINE

• New Research on Family Involvement and Academic Achievement From HFRP

  We organized a symposium this April at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association. The symposium spotlighted cutting-edge research methodologies to address processes of family involvement and academic outcomes for disadvantaged children across the developmental continuum. View presenters' slides and handouts on our conference page.

• Research Brief: Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education

  Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education, the first brief in our new evidence-based series, Family Involvement Makes a Difference, was announced to FINE members before the summer break and is being well received by many in the field. This brief synthesizes the latest research on how family involvement contributes to young children's learning and development. Written for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers, it showcases ideas that you can use right away in your own work to strengthen policy and practice. Upcoming FINE announcements will bring you two more in this series—one on family involvement in elementary school and another on family involvement in middle and high school.

New From Harvard Family Research Project

• Study of Predictors of Participation in Out-of-School Time Activities

  We invite you to see new findings from our out-of-school time study, including findings on the relationship between parenting and youth outcomes.

• Critical Issues in Adolescent Participation in Out-of-School Time Activities

  We organized this symposium at the Society for Research on Adolescence meeting this March. This symposium featured findings from several studies and highlighted family socioeconomic and neighborhood conditions that predict participation in out-of-school time activities.

• After School Evaluation Symposium

  Over 100 researchers, evaluators, policymakers, and practitioners in Washington, D.C., attended this symposium, which we convened last September with support from the C. S. Mott Foundation. The goal was to bring together the perspectives of diverse stakeholders to inspire new ideas and foster stronger links between research, practice, and policy. Now you can read presentations and summaries at the link above.

Tool Kit

• Discovering Community Power: A Guide to Mobilizing Local Assets and Your Organization's Capacity

  This community building workbook, developed by the Asset-Based Community Development Institute and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, is designed to help organizations, such as family support groups, connect with community assets to produce strong community-based projects.

Policy

• Strategy Spotlights

  The Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF) of the National League of Cities (NLC) has developed a series of documents highlighting action steps for city leaders to take on behalf of young children. The Strategy Spotlights focus on a range of topics including “Supporting Parents of Young Children.”

Audio Clips

• In Focus: Family Involvement

  You can listen to experts discuss the important roles parents play in a young child's development, both in the classroom and at home, in this Family Involvement National Conference Call hosted last April by Pre-K Now. You can also learn about ways that pre-K programs can involve families of diverse backgrounds in the learning process.

Recent Reports

• The Family Environment and Adolescent Well-being: Exposure to Positive and Negative Family Influences

  Child Trends and the National Adolescent Health Information Center show us in this report how various aspects of parenting shape the lives of youth.

• Increasing Family and Parent Engagement in After-School

  The After School Corporation outlines 15 examples of how site coordinators and staff are successfully engaging parents in their after school programs. Their report also contains sample materials that sites can use to improve parent involvement.

• Examining the Meaning of Accountability: Reframing the Construct

  Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning highlights what parents and other community members think “education accountability” means.

Recent Reports

• Many Voices, Common Principles: The Power to Transform

  Educators, students, parents and other leading thinkers will come together in Chicago from November 2–4 in a conference organized by the Coalition of Essential Schools to discuss what works in transforming schools into high-achieving and equitable places of learning connected to their communities.

• Anatomy of Success: Real Strategies for Closing Gaps and Raising Achievement

  Education Trust's annual conference will be held in Washington, D.C., from November 3–5 and will focus on closing the achievement gap. The conference will provide practical information and tools for those who want to set up a local process for reaching agreement about standards for student work, build a broader infrastructure for professional development, and engage their communities in pre-K–16.

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