January 2007 Announcement
Dear FINE Member,
Here are this month's FINE member updates. As
always, please feel free to forward this information to your friends and other
education colleagues.
New From FINE
Happy New Year! In this month's FINE announcement, we are pleased to offer
you two new Research Digests that are based on Harvard Family Research Project’s
longstanding work with the School Transition Study. Taken together, these briefs
establish the importance of family involvement in schools as a means of improving
the academic achievement of children living in low-income families, and highlight
ways that low-income working families stay engaged in their children's learning.
- Abstract
and Full Article
To read the full abstract or to order the article in its entirety, visit
APA Online at the link above.
- Research Digest: Making
It Work: Low-Income Working Mothers' Involvement in Their Children's Education
Drawing from the same rich study of diverse families, Heather Weiss and
her colleagues examine how low-income mothers' work patterns predict the
amount of their involvement in their children’s education. Their study
also reveals a variety of involvement strategies used by working mothers.
- Full Article
The full article is available as a pdf at the link above.
- Additional Research
To learn more about HFRP's line of family involvement research and to access
other articles based on this high-quality study of diverse families, go
to the School Transition Study page on HFRP's website.
- Interview
To read an interview with HFRP director Heather Weiss about HFRP's School
Transition Study work, please visit Harvard Graduate School of Education's
new Usable Knowledge website
Professional Development
- Writing
Measurable Goals, Benchmarks, and Objectives
The Center for Innovations in Education (CISE) at the University of Missouri
is offering a 5-week online interactive course for educators, families,
and university faculty and students who want to develop skills in writing
measurable goals for Individualized Education Programs as required by the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997 and 2004. For
more information, see the CISE website.
Recent Articles and Reports
- Community
& Family Engagement: Principals Share What Works
The Coalition for Community Schools explores six strategies to help school
leaders engage families, staff, partners and the larger community in the
life of the school.
- Trends
in the Use of School Choice: 1993 to 2003
This report from the National Center for Education Statistics shows that
there were no differences in parental involvement practices between students
enrolled in assigned and chosen public schools. Parents of students in private
schools, however, reported more direct involvement in their children’s
schools than parents of students in public schools.
- Core
Knowledge for PK–3 Teaching: Ten Components of Effective Instruction
The Foundation for Child Development identifies parent and community outreach
as one of the top 10 components of effective early childhood and elementary
instruction.
- Engaging
Communities
The latest issue of Voices in Urban Education, a quarterly publication
of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, focuses on how communities
are involved in public education. Articles provide the perspectives of schools,
students, government leaders, and others on the issue of community engagement.
Books
Upcoming Events
- National
Conference on Family Literacy 2007
The 16th annual national conference on family literacy will be held March
4–6 in Orlando, Florida. To register, go to the conference website
at the link above.
- Beyond
School Hours 2007
Foundations, Inc. will hold its 10th annual Beyond School Hours conference
February 7–10 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Two of the conference’s
sessions will focus on engaging families in after school programs. For more
information about the conference, visit Foundation, Inc.’s events page.
Contact Us
If you experience a problem reading this newsletter or have questions and
comments concerning our work, we would love to hear from you. Please send an
email to fine@gse.harvard.edu.
Enjoy!
The FINE Team at Harvard Family Research Project
|
