Offers suggestions for both teachers and parents about how they can best work together in a new partnership. (Author/JM)

Introduces an issue on family literacy in urban education, describing three approaches to family literacy. Articles highlight the sense of place, community, and identity; Hispanic parents' use of literacy-rich environments; discourse between teachers and Latino parents during conferences; identifying teaching practices that connect home and…

This paper provides Indian parents of children with disabilities with information from the Education for Parents of Indian Children with Special Needs Project concerning communication between Indian parents and non-Indian service providers. Five basic strategies for effective communication are reviewed: (1) when you do not understand, ask for…

Responding to the need for empirical data regarding the exercise of parental control under current finance practices in public education, this study examined the extent to which parents select their children's schooling by locating the family residence with schools in mind and the extent to which parents maintain frequent and self-initiated…

This handbook, written by the principal of an urban elementary school that serves a diverse student population in a low socioeconomic area, offers strategies for principals who wish to increase parent involvement in their schools. Chapter 1 presents a brief history of parent involvement in American public schools over the past 60 years. The next…

Two mothers of pupils in the Holyoke School System revitalized flagging parent involvement efforts with a program, the City-Wide Parent Participation Council, that includes the following strategies: (1) membership, voting, and elections; (2) scheduling; (3) minority outreach; (4) communications staff and office; (5) publicity; and (6) special…

Describes how some middle school teachers in Michigan are becoming proactive in their work to educate and reach out to parents on a day-to-day basis. Describes strategies for community building, for informing parents, and for involving parents. The teachers use these strategies as they inform parents about pedagogical practices and explain why…

The principal of a public elementary school serving grades K through 6 developed a community involvement program for a school in which community involvement had not been a major factor in the educational process. Primary objectives of the practicum were to increase the number of parents and other community members participating in activities…

This booklet, printed in both English and Spanish, offers suggestions to parents for getting the most out of a visit to their children's schools during New York City's Open School Week. It is comprised of five sections. The first section, "The Parent/Teacher Conference," discusses the following areas: (1) questions and concerns to…

Attempting to assist teachers in involving parents more completely in school life, this resource guide provides information and ideas on working and communicating with parents, parent-teacher meetings, and parent guidance. Part one of the book discusses the importance of sensitive communications, individual differences, and protocol. Part two…

Public Laws 94-142 and 99-457 mandate the provision of surrogate parents to represent parentless disabled children in acquiring educational services. Described are the rights and responsibilities of surrogate parents, their role in case conferences and in development of individualized education programs, and the activities of the Indiana Surrogate…

This paper reviews the school-family partnership in Hong Kong in the past decade. The typology of Epstein's six types of partnership is adopted as the analytical framework. The results show that there has been an increase in shared experience in school education among various stakeholders. Schools have become more convinced that they have a role…

The four essays in this collection provide guidelines for parents and teachers in educating children. The first essay, "Parents, the Pupil, and the School Curriculum," describes selected ways parents may help pupils to achieve in the school curriculum. "Objectives of the School, the Pupil, and Parents" discusses the need for teachers to plan…

This book offers an alternative to the traditional teacher-parent conference by giving the responsibility for assessment to the students. As students reflect on their own learning, seek out the views of others, and prepare their own portfolios, they come to know themselves as learners. The process combines assessment, teacher research, parent…

Reviews eight techniques for assessing family-school connections studied by participants in a two-year school personnel training program: informal observation and discussion; examination of pre-existing data; review of places, policies, and programs; focus group discussion; mailed survey; survey at school; telephone survey; and radio call-in.…