This issue of "Community Update" focuses on families involved in learning. The first article briefly discusses the "Ready to Read, Ready to Learn" White House summit that highlighted new research on early childhood learning. The center spread of this issue offers "Priming the Primary Educator: A Look at L. A. County's…

This issue of the "Early Childhood Bulletin" highlights some of the major concerns raised by parents during the second national meeting of parent members of state Interagency Coordinating Councils (ICCs) for early intervention, which was held in conjunction with the Partnerships for Progress Conference IV in Crystal City, Arlington, VA,…

This study reviews the research on community schools and reports on evaluations of community schools initiatives across the United States. It explains that community schools are important solutions in improving student learning. It uses research and evaluation data, as well as local school experiences, to illustrate why community schools are…

This study assessed the effect of the Success for All school reform model on the standardized reading scores, attendance, and disciplinary needs of 217 students in three elementary schools using the program and 132 similar students in three other urban schools. The schools were also compared using teacher, student, and parent perception data on…

Information feedback is widely believed to play an important role in cognitive processes such as monitoring and self-regulation. It has been linked to enhanced motivation and increased performance. Assisted by feedback, students confirm or change knowledge and modify cognitive processes for better performance. This study investigated self-selected…

This report describes a plan for motivating students to read in order to allow them to enjoy and appreciate literature and to provide the practice necessary to become effective readers. The targeted population consisted of first and fourth grade students in a middle class community, located in the Middle West. The problems of minimal time engaged…

This "First Teachers" training manual details a research-based and field-tested program in which elementary school children and their families create a family portfolio album of their stories and drawings that becomes a family keepsake. The manual provides information on the goals of the program and its intended audience, and the need for schools…

Arizona's high school dropout rate is nearly double the national average of 9 percent, with a significant number of its dropouts being students from economically and socially disadvantaged ethnic minority backgrounds. The Arizona Minority Education Policy Analysis Center conducted a series of roundtable discussions with school administrators,…

This brochure discusses the role of the parent of a child with a disability in assistive technology considerations. It describes assistive technology devices and services for a child with a disability, and provides information on the following areas: (1) the consideration of assistive technology during the Individualized Education Program (IEP);…

This book provides practitioners working with young adults with disabilities practical strategies for building expanded partnerships with parents during the transition years. It relies on three beliefs: parents need to be fully informed partners; practitioners need to empower parents to become partners; and parents can become accountable for…

Since 1999, Access to Intercultural Bilingual Education (AIBE) has endeavored to improve the quality of education in the rural department of El Quiche, Guatemala, where most people speak a Mayan language as their first language. AIBE focuses on education at the preschool and primary levels, with emphases on parent participation, bilingual methods,…

A set of parent-child math activities designed to help busy, working parents do math with their children as part of everyday situations such as cleaning up and making dinner included basic steps, variations, and information on working with children were developed for families with elementary grades children aged approximately 5 to 11 and…

The Montana Behavioral Initiative (MBI) was developed in 1995 in response to increased incidents of student behavior problems. The intent of MBI is to improve educational environments to meet the needs of all students, including those with behavioral challenges. Each participating school conducts needs assessments and develops site-specific goals…

This document is a synthesis of literature from 1997-2002 on the individualized education program (IEP), a core component of federal and state laws on the education of students with disabilities. The first section identifies the significant changes related to the IEP in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997. The…

This publication is designed to assist teachers, parents, and administrators in understanding what the recently reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, both law and regulations, now requires, and how the provisions of both the law and regulations affect services and programs for children with disabilities. It provides information…