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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.
All Publications & Resources WORKING WITH TEACHERS AND FAMILIES DEVELOPMENT PERIODS |
COMPLEMENTARY LEARNING CONNECTIONS
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Educators need to develop an effective synergy between parents and schools to promote student success. We use the term syneducation (synekpaidefsis;3 synergy + education) as the acquisition of a common educational experience (simultaneously and in cooperation) by individuals of different ages and educational backgrounds (Mylonakou, 2004). Our approach focuses mainly on how schools can give clear messages to parents about the necessity of their collaboration with schools.
Iro Mylonakou , Ioannis Kekes (March 2005) Research Report
This study found that teachers with National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification have more positive attitudes, are more tenacious in their approaches, and have more strategies for engaging families than noncertified teachers.
Rick Ginsberg , Lauri Hermann-Ginsberg (March 2005) Research Report
This exploratory case study examines whether the transition from welfare to work influences parental involvement in elementary school education.
Catherine D. Shiffman (February 2005) Research Report
Five community-based education organizing groups use various strategies to build trust and commitment among parents and teachers.
Celina Su (January 2005) Research Report
This issue of The Evaluation Exchange brings together the current knowledge base of programs in family support and family involvement, providing a continuous perspective on family processes with regard to children's learning and development, from a child's early years through adolescence. Articles address the challenges of evaluating family programs, such as the need for conceptual clarity, methodological rigor, accountability, and contextual responsiveness. Rounding out the issue are examples of ongoing evaluations of parent leadership and organizing to ensure that schools serve all children at high standards.
Evaluation Exchange Issue
This four-session discussion guide by the Everyday Democracy (formerly the Study Circles Resource Center)is intended for communities trying to close the achievement gap in their schools.
Everyday Democracy (formerly the Study Circles Resource Center) (2005) Tool for Practice
An urban public school successfully engages parents by offering a variety of school-based activities, a welcoming environment, and frequent communication between staff and parents.
Monique Ouimette , Jay Feldman, Rosann Tung (December 2004) Research Report
We teamed up with the National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools at the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) to present this 1-day Family, School, and Community Connections Symposium: New Directions for Research, Practice, and Evaluation.
Cathy Jordan , Mary Grassa O'Neill, Heather Weiss (December 2, 2004) Conferences and Presentations
This study examined the school-level effects on tested student achievement in 129 high poverty elementary schools that implemented a common set of comprehensive parent-engagement strategies over a 2-year period.
Sam Redding , Janis Langdon, Joseph Meyer, Pamela Sheley (November 2004) Research Report
Latino parents become more involved in their children's education when they understand the school system and know how to help their children.
Janet Chrispeels , Margarita González (November 2004) Research Report
Beth Martin, a fourth grade teacher, finds her students respond well to the new mathematics curriculum she is using in her class, but at home parents struggle to understand the new math and help their children with homework. How should Beth and her colleagues respond to parents' skepticism about the new curriculum and support their involvement at home?
Becky Smith McCarthy (2004) Teaching Case
This research report reviews parent involvement modules created for preservice teachers focusing on parent-teacher communication and collaborating with community. The online, problem-based modules were designed by the North Texas Partnership for Parent Engagement.
Mary M. Harris , Arminta Jacobson, Rebecca Hemmer (November 2004) Research Report
Article in the Journal of School Psychology, 42(6), 445–460. In this article the authors longitudinally examined associations between family involvement, children's feelings about literacy, and children's literacy achievement from kindergarten through fifth grade. Children's feelings about literacy mediated associations between family educational involvement and literacy achievement. Also, family involvement was more positively associated with literacy outcomes for children whose mothers were less educated compared with children whose mothers were more educated.
Eric Dearing , Kathleen McCartney, Heather Weiss, Holly Kreider, Sandra Simpkins (October 2004) Research Report
Engaging with families is one of the many strategies that out-of-school time (OST) programs use to create quality, adult-supervised experiences for youth during nonschool hours. This workshop introduced participants to the latest research and evaluation findings on family involvement in OST programs, and shared strategies for engaging with families, using two case studies to illustrate these practices in context.
Harvard Family Research Project (October 26, 2004) Conferences and Presentations
This study shows positive social and academic outcomes for low-income, minority kindergarten children whose parents promote learning in the home and contact schools regularly.
Christine McWayne , Marissa Owsianik (October 2004) Research Report
Parents often become involved in their children's education through homework. In 2001 research on parental involvement in children's homework was conducted (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2001). The review focused on understanding why parents become involved in their children's homework, what strategies they employ, and how involvement contributes to student learning. In this paper, findings from the 2001 review suggest several ways in which schools can invite parents' involvement in homework.
Joan M. T. Walker , Kathleen V. Hoover-Dempsey, Darlene R. Whetsel, Christa L. Green (October 2004) Research Report
Interviews with 84 math teachers about the use of their class websites suggest that sites could be used more effectively to share information with parents and to support parent involvement.
Ellen Lunts (October 2004) Research Report
Analysis of National Educational Longitudinal Study (NELS) data shows that parents' high educational expectations positively affect students' academic achievement in high school.
Evanthia Patrikakou (September 2004) Research Report
Evaluation plays a major role in shaping new directions for the field of family support. In her keynote address at the Participatory Evaluation and Parent Engagement Institute, sponsored by Family Support America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, in Kansas City, Missouri, September 20–22, 2004, Heather Weiss, Founder and Director of HFRP, described how evaluation can support learning, continuous improvement, and innovation. The four components of a family support evaluation strategy that she outlined were experimental studies to show program impact on families, utilization-focused evaluation to support policy and practitioner decision making, action research and empowerment evaluation, and performance standards based on solid research and evaluation.
Heather Weiss (September 20, 2004) Conferences and Presentations
Analyzing family, school, and community resources and needs as related to the family life cycle, examining child welfare and education and ecological approach, and exploration of careers related to children and families. Strategies to improve communication and collaboration are emphasized with a focus on family types, cultures, economic conditions, school systems, community services, political forces, advocacy groups, and other factors that impact young children and their families.
Arminta Jacobson (Fall 2004) Syllabus
Chapter in Discovering Successful Pathways in Children's Development: Mixed Methods in the Study of Childhood and Family Life. Edited by Thomas S. Weisner. Published by University of Chicago Press. This chapter chronicles a mixed-method analysis of family involvement in children's learning, drawing observations about the process and added value of combining methods.
Heather B. Weiss , Holly Kreider, Ellen Mayer, Rebecca Hencke, Margaret Vaughan (Fall 2004) Research Report
Chinese-American college students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds describe the role of their families in their paths to college.
Vivian Louie (September 2004) Research Report
Emphasis is on continuous family-school teamwork efforts. Attention is given to family background and social context. The course will cover effective family involvement programs/models and current research underscoring the dynamic interaction between families and schools on the academic success of pre-K through grade 8 students.
Randi B. Wolfe (Summer 2004) Syllabus
African-American and Chinese-American parents use alternative forms of social capital to support their children's education.
John Diamond , Ling Wang, Kimberly Gomez (May 2006) Research Report
A participatory research project examines a school-based writing workshop in which parents write stories for a literary magazine that is circulated in the school and community.
Janise Hurtig (May 2004) Research Report
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Published by Harvard Family Research Project