Background: South Africa has one of the lowest-performing education systems in the world. By the fourth grade, many learners are already 2 or more years behind their peers, especially in mathematics and literacy. Family literacy programmes as a form of home-school partnership are often proposed as an early intervention to support early literacy…

This paper is a quantitative synthesis of research on home literacy environment (HLE) and children's English as a second language (ESL) learning outcomes through a meta-analysis of 18 articles in kindergarten, primary, and secondary school students (N = 4401) carried out between 2000 and 2018. It examines the associations between HLE factors and…

Raising the literacy levels of young children is a major concern in many countries for which various programmes have been suggested. One of these is family literacy programmes. In previous meta-analyses wide variability in effects has been found and it has been suggested that this is partly caused by variability in implementation quality. This…

Parents are a child's first educator. A child's family and home environment has a strong impact on his/her language and literacy development and educational achievement. This impact is stronger during the child's early years but continues throughout their school years. Many background variables affect the impact of the family and home environment…

This working paper explores reasons to encourage parents of English language learners (ELLs) to be involved in the learning process at the middle school level. Barriers to parental involvement of language minority students will be identified and successful, research-based strategies to increase parental involvement will be introduced. Five…

This article analyzes a subset of data gathered during a survey of 155 school systems and communities across the nation. The data were obtained from a capability survey as part of the application for a Toyota Family Literacy Program (TFLP) grant. Educators and civic leaders in 38 states responded to questions about their five greatest challenges…

Sharing research completed during a practicum project, this resource guide presents ideas, suggestions, and references to enhance children's and educators' repertoire of reading strategies. It lists 50 ways to encourage reading and writing connections at home; presents 10 reading strategies for unknown words; offers 17 suggestions for literacy…

Examines early educational interventions aimed at preventing school failure. Presents typology of prevention and intervention. Describes four examples of preventive intervention and critiques their effectiveness, acceptability, and generalization: High Scope, Reading Recovery, Focused Literacy Programme, and parent involvement programs to support…

This paper investigates existing research about the strengths and weakness of current family literacy programs and presents a 98-item list of family literacy activities across the curricula for adult educators to promote intergenerational literacy. Educational experts feel that family literacy programs need more evaluation, and that the…

To investigate the recommendation that children practice reading aloud at home, conversations of 3rd graders reading to their mothers were audiotaped, transcribed, and coded. Conversations between below-average readers and their mothers were marked by the frequent use of error corrections. College-educated mothers asked significantly more…

The present review of the literature aims to look at two-generation programs and their effects on children and parents as a potential strategy to improve parent involvement in Head Start while responding to the self-sufficiency needs of families. This paper reviews several two-generation program evaluations: Comprehensive Child Development…

This paper reviews 5 articles published in 1995 on family literacy research. The articles reviewed are: (1) a study on literacy in Iceland by Ronald Taylor which examined how Icelandic families share language and reading related activities; (2) an article by Barbara Moss and Gay Fawcett which describes and comments on different home literacy…

A summary of the research on adult literacy indicated factors which make an effective program: recruitment of students centered on personal contacts, individual intake conferences, and sensitive and compassionate teachers with high morale about the program. A summary of the research in preschool literacy programs stressed that factors associated…

Reviews literature on family influence on children's acquisition of literacy. Discusses the ambivalence regarding family literacy theories and the lack of family literacy theoretical frameworks. Identifies types of family involvement and effective literacy strategies for families. Finds that most studies suggest that family literacy contributes to…

Educators have known for years that children who come from homes where storybooks are read have an advantage over those children who are not read to. Research has shown that shared reading, reading aloud, making a variety of print materials available, and promoting positive attitudes toward literacy have a significant impact on children's literacy…