Discusses strategies that support student self-determination in transition planning, including: holding high expectations for students, preparing students for transition meetings, allowing students to make important decisions, encouraging students to attend transition fairs, and providing opportunities for students to explore their communities and…

Provides general guidelines for enhancing teacher-parent conferences with parents of diverse cultures, particularly conferences to discuss learning or behavior problems. The need for teachers to become aware of personal beliefs, values, and expectations that guide their social interactions and to use culturally sensitive conference strategies are…

Summarizes documents and journal articles from the ERIC database discussing topics related to parent-teacher conferences at the elementary and middle levels, including alternative activities such as student-led conferences. (Author)

Korean children's school experiences as new immigrants to the United States are often emotionally turbulent because of environmental and psychological stresses that result when moving from one culture to another. With some basic knowledge and some suggested approaches, teachers can assist these children, whose numbers are increasing, to have a…

Noting the important influence of a positive home-school relationship on children's academic achievement, this study explored some of the factors that can prevent parents from becoming involved in their child's school. A questionnaire consisting of 25 statements to be answered on a five-point Likert scale, and four open-ended questions was…

A program implemented in a rural elementary school in Florida had the goal of increasing parental involvement of students in grades 1, 4, and 5. The majority of students in the school were black, came from single-parent homes, and were considered low-income. Prior to program implementation, a parent survey revealed that of 53 parents, 21 read to…

Noting that many of the functions undertaken by classroom teachers involve communication skills or skills dependent on an ability to communicate effectively, this paper outlines a course in speech communication specifically for teachers. The paper first lists the teaching, managing, and decision making activities teachers undertake that involve…

FOUR PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS ARE HIGHLIGHTED. ONE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BEGAN A SPECIAL PROGRAM TO COORDINATE SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH SIXTH GRADE. IT HELD PARENT-STUDY GROUPS AND USED RESOURCE PERSONS IN THE CLASSROOM. ANOTHER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PROVIDED A SPECIAL AEROSPACE PROGRAM. A JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL HAS EFFECTIVELY USED AN…

This publication discusses selected elements of community involvement programs and processes that directly relate to the classroom teacher. The areas covered give the teacher a theoretical base to support the concept of community involvement as well as practical ways to implement basic elements of community involvement to enhance the learning…

Reporting practices used by school systems serving elementary age, educable mentally retarded children were determined and reporting techniques evaluated. All the Minneapolis-St. Paul school systems submitted specimen report cards, and 91 of a possible 124 teachers in 23 school systems completed a questionnaire appraising common reporting…

An attempt to improve procedures for reporting the progress of mentally handicapped children in special classes, the guidelines state considerations related to the intent and design of report cards and describe a survey of 188 report cards used in special classes. Four sample report cards are included, which are designed to cover identification…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between recommended administrative practices and procedures used in desegregated secondary schools to achieve integration and the quality of integration of desegregated secondary schools. A school system was chosen in the southeast. The Prime Secondary Student Questionnaire was…

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…

These four quarterly newsletter issues address various topics of interest to teachers of young children. Each issue includes articles on a specific theme, along with regular columns. The Fall 2000 issue focuses on imbuing celebrations with meaning. One article describes how one Japanese preschool adapts concepts from the Waldorf education approach…

Presents the following six articles on working with parents: (1) "Conversing with Parents through Dialogue Journals"; (2) "Reading with Your Child at Home"; (3) "Dads by the Dozens"; (4) "Parents in Your Classroom: A Valuable Literacy Link"; (5) "Inclusion: But They Still Won't Play with Me"; and…