STEM education researchers are well aware of the need for increased access and inclusivity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education for students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds. One of the many barriers for students from underserved cultural and linguistic groups is the difficulty of…

The US is becoming progressively diverse and so are our classrooms. Home-school partnerships are essential to supporting diverse learners. It is critical both new and veteran practitioners make intentional efforts to provide culturally proficient practices when building home-school partnerships. Cultural awareness is identified across disciplines…

Although research is somewhat limited, Rivera et al. (2019) provide some guidance for successful practices for young children who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) with significant cognitive disabilities (SCD), more specifically those who are identified as English learners. Across their literature review, common themes for…

Teachers are the critical component of students' success in the classroom (NRC 2001), but families are the critical component of student success at home. When families and teachers develop strong relationships and build trust with each other, students benefit (Henderson and Mapp 2002). This is especially true in communities where home culture is…

Current educational data indicate that culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students--students in the ethnic or language minority--have some of the lowest academic outcomes and graduation rates among student subgroups. Supported by more than a decade of literature, culturally relevant pedagogy provides a set of practices that teachers and…

As the U.S. population grows more varied, public schools face the challenge of meeting the needs of an increasing population of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students with exceptionalities in inclusive classrooms. This is especially evident in the urban inclusive classrooms. There is a strong connection between culture and learning.…

Parents from culturally diverse backgrounds need to feel that they play a vital role in the future success of their sons or daughters with disabilities. Differences in culture and ethnicity can affect families' involvement in transition planning and the goals that they emphasize for their children. Families of diverse backgrounds were surveyed and…

Parents' involvement in their children's education influences the children's educational success and is regarded as best practice in early childhood. A critical component in increasing parental involvement is effective collaboration between teacher and family. This involves being friendly, honest, and clear; listening and providing information;…

In this webinar, Dr. Joyce Epstein, Director of the Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships and the National Network of Partnership Schools, discussed what the research says about effective family engagement. The webinar and PowerPoint presentation are also available. A brief list of resources is included.

Spoken parent-educator interactions through language interpreters for parents who do not speak English can challenge early intervention/early childhood special education professionals. Research suggests that language interpretation is often inadequate to ensure that the parental participation, informed parental consent, and interpretation mandates…

This manuscript describes a process for addressing cultural differences that is effective when applied specifically to collaborating with families in planning an intervention or an Individualized Education Program (IEP). The process, known as biculturalization, is designed to create culturally appropriate interventions by identifying and…

Much thought must go into preparing children for the transition from home or a child care environment to school. Transition experiences need to consider the whole child, including children's cognitive, socio-emotional, and physical readiness for learning. It is equally vital to explore ways to involve families, who are children's first and most…

This article presents the responses given in several schools of the 1st Cycle of the Basic Education Level (children aged 6 to 10 years) of the Metropolitan Area of Lisbon relating to the issue of integration of immigrant children and children of immigrant descent. The goal was to establish the relationship between the geographical context where…

Although economically disadvantaged and minority students made some gains in their academic achievement performance, education reforms still fail to close the academic achievement gap between them. A discussion of the factors that influence the achievement gap is presented and provides some professional development implications. According to the…

This article describes Project Mandela, a federally funded enrichment and family support program for special populations (such as culturally diverse and economically disadvantaged) of gifted learners. Eighty-seven families participated in development of Individual Family Support Plans to enhance children's educational progress. The project found…