A review of research supported by the Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) focuses on practical applications of research findings on family involvement in special education. The findings identify how family life can be utilized as a source of children's learning opportunities, concluding with four suggested…

This news brief describes how the faculty and Parent Teachers' Association at Steenrod Elementary School in Wheeling, West Virginia, organized a volunteer fair to increase parent involvement and retain good volunteers. The fair calls attention to the many ways in which volunteers can help. The planning group first listed the school's most…

Parent conferencing is a way to dramatically improve home/school relationships. Parent conferences, at their very best, provide the teacher with useful information about individual students. More importantly, however, they create a parent/teacher team atmosphere, with each member contributing his or her knowledge and experience for the benefit of…

In recent years, researchers and practitioners have become increasingly interested in father/male involvement in early childhood programs. However, few empirical studies have examined early childhood educators' efforts to involve fathers in such programs. The purpose of the present investigation was to assess early childhood educators' efforts to…

A series of four parent newsletters helped one primary teacher explain how children were learning to write, the development of writing as a process, and what parents could do to help their children with writing. (RL)

The journal issue contains articles on parents, special education, and diagnostic organizations. The first article, "Parental Reactions to a Partnership in Special Education" by M. Feldman and M. Preston, stresses the value of including parents on the special education team particularly in the expression of their feelings toward psychoeducational…

Four articles on fostering communicative competence in the English as a second language classroom are presented. In "Communicative Competence as an Emphasis in Language Teaching," Alan Kerr examines the subject at a theoretical level and looks at some implications for the classroom. In "Communicative Competence, or 'Who Speaks What…

The parent-teacher conference is a valuable strategy to improve a student's performance. This news brief offers suggestions for developing a "parent friendly" handbook to help parents effectively prepare for teacher-parent conferences. The handbook should include the basic information, a statement that emphasizes the importance of the conference,…

This theme issue on the role of parents in the education of their gifted children contains two feature articles. "'Pushy and Domineering': A Stigma Placed on Parents of Gifted Children," by Lynn C. Cole and Roxana M. DellaVecchia, examines how parents are perceived as "pushy and domineering" when they strongly advocate for appropriate education…

Proceedings of a regional Parent Involvement Network teleconference in which nine citites in the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory's (SEDL) five-state region (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma) plus Lincoln, Nebraska, participated are highlighted in this summary report. Participants from each state reported on…

This guide for Michigan parents of children with physical disabilities provides a synopsis of information and suggestions on school bus transportation gained from a series of four workshops. Topics covered include: (1) planning (determining just what the student's special transportation needs are by the Individualized Educational Planning…

Recent studies have verified Secretary of Education William Bennett's observation on the importance of home and family life. The most successful students are those whose parents become actively engaged in the educational process at home and at school. To capitalize on potential parent involvement, principals need to understand the kinds of…

Part of a 13-volume series designed to help Lutheran communities assess the feasibility of starting a Lutheran elementary school and to assist ongoing schools in current operation, this volume deals with the responsibility shared by parents and Lutheran schools for providing the child's education. The document begins by pointing out the need for a…

The ERIC Review is published three times a year and announces research results, publications, and new programs relevant to each issue's theme topic. This issue examines education-community-business partnerships via two principal articles: "Collaboration To Build Competence: The Urban Superintendents' Perspective," by Terry A. Clark; and…

During five meetings conducted in different states by the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) to gain insight into the status of 55 parent involvement programs from their organizers and implementors, parental involvement in the secondary education level repeatedly emerged as a shared concern. Following the meetings SEDL…