A growing body of evidence suggests that family engagement matters for student success. Research shows that family engagement improves school readiness, student achievement, and social skills. Furthermore, an increasing number of innovative approaches to education leverage and connect the many settings and times in which children learn and grow to…

Teaching cases are a valuable tool in preparing teachers and school administrators to engage effectively with families. Because the case method presents a story in practice, it offers students an active learning opportunity. Teaching cases involve real world situations and consider the perspectives of various stakeholders, including teachers,…

For family engagement to improve student learning, a wide range of stakeholders--from parents to principals to teachers--must share responsibility in developing, implementing, and assessing their school district's family engagement strategy. In order to help each of these stakeholder groups define their roles, superintendents and central…

The purpose of the brief is to help educators, service providers, and local evaluators in schools, intermediary and community-based organizations, and social service agencies become more effective by highlighting the best program and evaluation practices of family-strengthening intervention programs. At a time when evidence-based practice matters,…

School, parent and community partnerships have become an educational priority at both the state and federal levels. If teacher education programs are to meet the goals of the Illinois Professional Standards, the objectives of the federal Goals 2000, and the accreditation standards of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education…

On September 22-23, 2005, Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) and the C.S. Mott Foundation convened the After School Evaluation Symposium, with over 100 researchers, evaluators, policymakers, and practitioners, in Washington, DC. The goal of the interactive 2-day meeting was to bring together the perspectives of diverse stakeholders to inspire…