The unprecedented challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic led teachers to innovatively shift their teaching methods. These pioneering practices inspired this study's "Elevated Family-Teacher Partnership" intervention which was designed to provide equitable guidance and communication for all families. This dissertation, in practice,…

"Continuous Improvement in High Schools" gives educators and policymakers an accessible, actionable framework to address one of the nation's most important educational priorities: improving high school graduation and postsecondary preparedness rates. Martha Abele Mac Iver and Robert Balfanz, national experts in dropout prevention, apply…

School districts across the nation seek parental involvement to increase student engagement and academic success. Families from Title I Schools, in comparison to dominant culture, may have a minimal opportunity of involvement with their child's education in respect to partnering with schools in comparison to the dominant culture. The Department of…

The first step to enabling Maori achievement is engaging whanau (family) and tamariki (children) in situations where their mana (autonomy) and tuakiri (identity) remains intact. This paper identifies steps for culturally critical and sustaining practice when engaging whanau and students, highlights some positive examples, and reflects on lessons…

Teachers regularly communicate with families, yet few candidates are well-prepared for this professional activity. This gap can hinder family-school partnership and pupils' success. Given that candidates' opportunities to learn about family engagement (FE) depends on the decisions and values of individual teacher educators, we illustrate how FE…

As the 2020-2021 school year began, the Wisconsin-Minnesota Comprehensive Center (WMCC)--working with Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) and housed at the University of Minnesota's (UMN) Center for Applied Research & Educational Improvement (CAREI), the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Wisconsin Evaluation Collaborative (WEC), and…

"Reading in Pairs" is a peer tutoring program designed to improve oral fluency and reading comprehension in English as a Foreign Language. In this program students work in pairs, using an established relationship framework and the support of their teacher. This article outlines the main conceptual foundations of the program: peer…

"Leaders of Their Own Learning" offers a new way of thinking about assessment based on the celebrated work of EL Education schools across the country. Student-Engaged Assessment is not a single practice but an approach to teaching and learning that equips and compels students to understand goals for their learning and growth, track their…

This brief reviews research demonstrating that student learning and development depend on affirming relationships operating within a positive school climate. It describes how such an environment can provide all children with a sense of safety and belonging by creating safe and culturally responsive classroom communities, connecting with families,…

New knowledge about human development from neuroscience and the sciences of learning and development demonstrates that effective learning depends on secure attachments; affirming relationships; rich, hands-on learning experiences; and explicit integration of social, emotional, and academic skills. Given that emotions and relationships strongly…

This study used a qualitative, grounded theoretical framework to examine integration of Joyce Epstein's six typologies of family involvement in responses to discussion questions for an online parent involvement course. Fifty-two undergraduate students' responses were axially coded. Overarching themes were then determined with the constant…

Serving a working-class suburb of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the Hawthorne School District (HSD) is a small district with 11 schools: seven elementary schools, three middle schools, and one dependent charter high school. HSD's students are predominantly from low-income families (87%). Most students (71%) are Latino/a and about fifth (21%)…

The Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), asked the Council of the Great City Schools to review the district's services for students with disabilities and provide recommendations to improve performance and narrow the achievement gap between these students and their nondisabled peers. This report was designed to help SCUSD achieve its…

Today, President Obama's "Blueprint for Education Reform" places the principal as the key player in raising academic standards and improving learning for all students. Research has been done on the role of the school principal in school effectiveness and school improvement at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. However, very…

The purpose of this heuristic case study was to develop a thick, rich description of the culturally responsive pedagogical practices of teachers and to describe what instruction looks like when students are engaged in learning that addresses their unique cultural needs. For the purposes of this study, culturally responsive pedagogy was defined as…