This paper presents the results of a heuristic and interpretive study of a public policy experiment in the criminal justice system, victim offender mediation conferencing. Conferences typically include the victim, the offender, their supporters and family members, and one or more conference facilitators. Participants report high levels of…

The development of community-based alternatives to institutional care for juvenile offenders should be based on (1) a clear conceptualization of what "community-based" means, (2) intervention efforts that consider the context of the clients' social relationship networks; and (3) resolution of professional and territorial conflicts.…

Describes a special Head Start initiative called Free to Grow: Head Start Partnerships to Promote Substance-Free Communities. Notes five such Head Start programs in Puerto Rico, Kentucky, California, Colorado, and New York that have designed substance abuse prevention models to strengthen families and neighborhoods by providing a healthy…

Describes the purposes and missions of the Partnership for Access to Higher Mathematics (PATH) Project. Focuses on the degree to which the projects' goals were achieved in an eighth- grade mathematics program. Provides demographic data and the results of statistical analyses used to determine the effectiveness of the project, and concludes with…

These three brochures are short guides to show how parents, schools, and communities can support family involvement in education and help build a better educational environment. Noting that communities that support schools and families are better places to live, work, and learn, The "Join Together for Kids" brochure provides information…

Strategic and operational issues throughout the world formed the focus of the International Conference on Family Planning. The objectives of the conference were to review the accomplishments of family planning over the past decade, assess the challenges and opportunities for the 1980's, and identify means to strengthen commitment to family…

Today's educational reform proposals are undermined by four dilemmas. First, the public may demand visible results before it will provide the funding needed to achieve them. Second, higher academic standards will increase failure rates, while more attainable standards will inadequately educate students. Third, the current focus on high schools may…

Schools that students experience as safe and supportive will be more successful at promoting student achievement and developing qualities such as good character and citizenship. However, this commonsensible priority is sometimes slighted when other issues demand a school's attention. This guide identifies four core elements necessary to create and…

Discusses strategies to facilitate children's explorations that include supporting open-ended inquiry, supervising safely, seizing the moment, offering a place for discovery, providing access to information, sharing respect for life, seeking community involvement, and celebrating wonder. (JRH)

Outlines a major literacy initiative for urban children taking place in the Dallas, Texas Public Schools. Describes several different programs at the school district level aimed at family and community outreach, in order to create a literacy-education support system with primary care givers in the homes. (SR)

Analyzed data from a 1996 end-of-the-year survey that updated information on schools in the National Network of Partnership Schools, which was designed to build comprehensive programs of school, family, and community partnerships. Results indicated that five ingredients were crucial for partnership success: active and supportive action teams,…

A kindergarten rodeo organized by teachers in Hector, Arkansas, rekindled family and community interest in the school and helped develop a sense of connectedness and inclusiveness toward Hispanic families new to this previously all-White, Protestant community. Contains 14 references. (TD)

The National Parent Teacher Association (PTA) has developed standards for parent and family involvement in education in conjunction with the National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education and in keeping with the National Education Goals of 1990. These standards are research-based and grounded in sound educational philosophy and practical…

Based on the assumption that all American children deserve an opportunity to be born healthy and to grow up healthy, this guide presents the recommendations approved by the majority of the National Commission on Children for improving the health of the nation's pregnant women and children. The Commission's five recommendations are: (1) provide…

China's educational system is the subject of this book, which includes observations and interpretations by individual members of an American delegation to the country in October, 1977. During the 18-day trip, the group visited preschool centers, primary centers, a middle school, colleges, universities and vocational schools, school-run factories,…