This article draws on work with communities in the rural and remote towns of Brewarrina, Wilcannia and Enngonia, New South Wales (NSW) to explore the relationship between low adult literacy levels and the continuing alienation of Aboriginal communities from educational decision making. Building on the analysis of community-school relations…

The aim of this paper was to compare the recruitment strategies of two recent studies that focused on the parental influences on childhood obesity during the preschool years. The first study was a randomised controlled trial (RCT) of the Mind, Exercise, Nutrition?…?Do It! 2-4 obesity prevention programme and the second was a longitudinal cohort…

The School for Student leadership (SSL) provides a unique educational experience for Australian Year 9 secondary school students at a time when parental expectations may not necessarily be in alignment with student engagement and motivation. Yet there are often concerns amongst both students and their parents about spending time outside…

These guidelines for 2010-2013 relate specifically to the Partnership Brokers program. This program is part of the Australian Government's contribution to the Youth Attainment and Transitions National Partnership and will commence on 1 January 2010. These Guidelines set out the requirements for the provision of services by organisations contracted…

Main elements of a discussion on mathematics education and parents at an Australian conference are presented. Suggestions on how parents can be involved, including descriptions of three programs, are included. (MNS)

Presents evidence that schools inconsistently tap the social, cultural, and linguistic resources of families, privileging specific groups. Argues that teachers need to examine their literacy practices and the ways these affect students. Offers a description of an Australian program to provide a framework for bridging home and school literacies.…

As part of a larger Australian study on family literacy, this study obtained information about a wide range of family or community literacy initiatives currently in operation in Australia. The study was interested in how the language and literacy learning of students from a variety of schools and communities was influenced by the involvement of…

A parent-child dialogic reading program was implemented across four preschools, involving 62 caregivers/parents in a low socioeconomic status, disadvantaged community where English was not the first language in 54 per cent of the homes. This socioculturally sensitive program aimed to enhance children's language and emergent literacy development,…

This digest presents a description of three innovative interventions designed to support student literacy acquisition outside the classroom in low resource communities. It begins with a discussion of literacy related issues in low resource environments, noting that an increasing number of children who are not acquiring a basic education live in…

Acknowledging that if schools want fathers to become involved in their children's education, schools must value men for what they can contribute, this booklet presents stories giving a range of examples of schools trying to facilitate the involvement of fathers, including uncles, grandfathers, and other men from the community. The stories are not…

This book is a compilation of 13 speeches given at a 1978 conference in Canberra, Australia on the theme of quality education in the Australian system. Some of the topics covered include the disadvantaged schools' program, the school as a social agency, quality education in rural schools, curriculum and the socially disadvantaged, parental…

Describes an Australian program, called Talk to a Literacy Learner, which involves parents more intimately in the literacy development of their children. Focuses on the strategies parents use to interact with their children as they read and write. Discusses program effectiveness. (SR)

Discusses the objectives, practices, and values associated with home-based early childhood programs. (MP)

Four programs focusing on the school-community relationship and cooperation are described. The first illustrates how a building program was initiated in a Lutheran school in south Australia. The second focuses on the nature of parent involvement in a New South Wales high school and needed changes. The third program sought to guage parent opinion…

These two papers are products of the Mount Druitt Early Childhood Project, a project established to develop, implement and evaluate five different early childhood programs for disadvantaged children in a suburban area of Sydney, Australia. The programs enrolled children from preschool age through kindergarten and first grade. The first document…