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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.

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WORKING WITH TEACHERS AND FAMILIES DEVELOPMENT PERIODS
COMPLEMENTARY LEARNING CONNECTIONS

Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Meet Paulo Domínguez, Sixth Grader

Paulo Domínguez is an intelligent sixth-grade boy who has recently become disengaged from schoolwork and is hanging out with peers whom his teachers and parents fear are a bad influence. Begin here to read Paulo’s story.

 

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Meet Alberto and Sarita Domínguez, Parents of Paulo

Sarita and Alberto are Paulo’s parents. In their story, they reflect on their own educational opportunities and their desire for Paulo to pursue college in his future.

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Nancy Brown, Paulo’s Math Teacher

Teachers are often among the most influential adults in a child’s decision to stay engaged in or disengaged from school. Hear from Nancy Brown, Paulo’s math teacher, about her perspective on and concerns about Paulo’s direction in school.

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Meet Miguel Robles, a Family Friend

Meet Miguel, a friend of the Domínguez family, who mentors Paulo and tutors him in math. Miguel was also a part of the Más Allá program for college-bound students when he was in middle school and high school. Now he attends college.

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Meet Rachel Marquez, Community College Outreach Program Director

Más Allá is a college outreach program run by Rachel Marquez. Rachel meets Paulo at an informational session about Más Allá and worries that he is like many of the young men on the fringe she has encountered before.

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Supporting Data

In this next section, we explore data for Bay Vista Middle School and the Más Allá program. Looking at these data will help provide a glimpse into the larger setting in which Paulo’s story is situated.

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Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case: Piecing It All Together

In the final section of the Staying on the Path Toward College Interactive Case, we piece it all together. We think about the principles guiding smooth transitions to middle school that lead to high school and college success, assumptions people in the case make, and how difficult issues might be resolved.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Meet Marisela, High School Senior

Marisela is at the center of the Making a Decision About College Interactive Case. A senior in high school who dreams of becoming a doctor, Marisela is conflicted about whether to go away to college or stay close to home for her education.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Meet Claudia, Marisela’s Mother

Claudia Castillo is Marisela’s mother. Claudia has big hopes for her daughter, but as a single mother she is concerned about not having Marisela around to help with the younger siblings.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Meet Linda Ruiz, Biology Teacher

Marisela’s biology teacher, Linda Ruiz, can really relate to Marisela. From her own story of deciding whether to go away to college or stay home, Linda has advice she’d like to offer Marisela.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Meet Jonathan Stewart, Guidance Counselor

At Palmdale High School, Jonathan Stewart is the only guidance counselor for 550 students. Based on the little he knows about Marisela, he wonders if she should stay local to help her mother with her siblings.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Supporting Data 

In this section, we examine data and policies surrounding immigrant and ethnically diverse high-school graduates’ decisions to go to college.

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Making a Decision About College Interactive Case: Piecing It All Together

In the final section of the Making a Decision About College Interactive Case, we piece it all together. We think about the principles guiding the decision to go away to college, assumptions people in the case make, and how difficult issues might be resolved.

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Effective Home-School Communication

Not all home–school communication succeeds in supporting student learning. In this article, Duke University's JoBeth Allen offers tips for effective communication between schools and families that can help children to learn and grow.

JoBeth Allen (January 2009) Research Report

Design Thinking: Catalyzing Family Engagement to Support Student Learning

Design Thinking cultivates fertile ground for promoting deep understanding and action-oriented partnerships between families and educators to support student learning. Discover five steps that enable families and educators to create meaningful strategies for family engagement.

Allison Rowland (April 2016) Research Report

Three Lessons in Developing a Systemic Approach to Family Engagement

Learn how the second-largest school district in California worked collaboratively to develop a systemic family engagement framework while putting family voice front and center.

 

Allison Rowland (July 26, 2016) Research Report

Identifying Assumptions About and Barriers to the Transition to School

Through a case discussion, the Bridging Worlds case became a catalyst for robust dialogue discussion about the assumptions teachers make during the transition to kindergarten and their potential consequences for children and families.

Anita Ede (August 25, 2015) Research Report

The Power of Community Organizing: Creating Parent Advocates to Work Toward Educational Change

Zakiyah Ansari, a parent and community organizer with the Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ) in New York City, shares how CEJ empowers parents and community members to advocate for education reform at the local, state, and federal levels.

Zakiyah Ansari (May 2011) Research Report

Erik Greer

Erik's first grade teacher is concerned about his intentional aggression towards other children and communicates regularly with Erik's mother about it. Subtle differences in beliefs between Erik's mother and teacher leave both feeling unsatisfied in their attempts to help Erik. How can the two build a partnership to change Erik's behavior?

Kris Balle (1999) Teaching Case

Reaching out to the Only One out There

Brian is struggling with his sexual orientation and confronts Jacob, a teacher whom he suspects is gay. Jacob reveals his sexual orientation to Brian and when Brian reports this information to his mother, Jill, she demands her son to withdraw from extracurricular activities led by a gay teacher. How can Jacob, knowing the risks of suicide among gay youth, best support Brian and gain Jill's confidence?

Elizabeth Berges (2001) Teaching Case

Transmedia Activities: Engaging Families to Improve Children's Early Mathematics Achievement

Make way for mathematics digital media! New research reveals that regular use of digital games and hands-on mathematics activities at home, along with parent training around digital media for learning, can improve mathematics outcomes for young children.

Betsy McCarthy (June 7, 2016) Research Report

Exploring the Parent, Family, Community Engagement Simulation: A Conversation With Brandi Black Thacker and Guylaine Richard

What you say to families and do with them matters! In this Q & A with Brandi Black Thacker and Guylaine Richards, we learn about how the Parent, Family, and Community Engagement Simulation can be used as a professional development tool in Head Start/Early Head Start programs and beyond.

Brandi Black Thacker , Guylaine Richard (December 5, 2013) Research Report

Tapping Into Technology: The Role of the Internet in Family–School Communication

The first large-scale study to examine the usage and benefits of Internet-based family–school communication finds implications for family involvement during adolescence and raises concerns about educational equity.

Suzanne Bouffard (July 2008) Research Report

Continuous Improvement: Being Responsive When There is Need for Change

Deborah J. Brown, external evaluator for Save the Children, discusses how continuous improvement processes have helped strengthen one of Save the Children’s language development and pre-literacy programs, Early Steps to School Success.

Deborah J. Brown (September 17, 2013) Research Report

Framing Program Evaluation: Why We Should Tinker With Theories of Change and Logic Models

While evaluation needs may vary, all organizations can benefit from utilizing theory-based evaluation tools to frame evaluation efforts. This article explores how three organizations developed their program’s theory of change and logic model.

Carolina Buitrago (November 19, 2015) Research Report

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Published by Harvard Family Research Project