This brief explores some of the evidence supporting approaches to family engagement that are effective methods of improving academic achievement. It also includes an overview of different types of family engagement, including case study examples of promising practices and recommendations for parents, school personnel, program officials, and…

Twelve articles in this special issue look at changes in adult basic education (ABE) including the following: changes in policy, the overhaul of welfare, state governance, workforce development, family literacy, the connection with employment and training, contextualized literacy, health education, political and economic literacy, adult literacy…

Seven model family literacy programs in Illinois were monitored for one year to determine successful program components and characteristics and to assist local programs in developing and implementing practical evaluation systems. Six were networking programs each of which involved several agencies, and one program was designed on a center-based…

Designed for administrators, educators, and people interested in children's learning, this book explores ways to reawaken parents' understanding of their role as their children's first teachers. The volume is divided into four major sections. Part 1, which provides a background and rationale for developing intergenerational programming in support…

Family literacy programs reflect a recent trend in educational reform that has proven to be a successful educational model for all members of the family unit. Based on the literature that links family involvement to student achievement, these initiatives focus on empowering parents of school children. These programs have been particularly…

This paper attempts to raise awareness and stimulate debate about the family as a focus for developing learning in the United Kingdom (U.K.). The discussion focuses on the following aspects of the issue: the nature and scope of family learning; families as a place for learning; context; development of family learning; patterns of provision;…

The first meeting of the National Literacy Summit 2000 convened 150 leaders from adult education and literacy and other related fields for a 2-day intensive working meeting to begin building a national consensus on how to move adult and family literacy forward in the 21st century. Comments and suggestions offered by summit participants were…