We are delighted to welcome you to the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends 2014, taking place in Porto, Portugal, from 4 to 6 of April. Psychology, in our time, offers a large range of scientific fields where it can be applied. The goal of understanding individuals and groups (mental functions and behavioral…

This guide presents innovative school psychological practices to help children with disabilities learn. Descriptions are provided on programs, practices, and particular cases, divided into four sections: 13 suggestions for helping students learn, 10 guidelines for helping teachers teach, 8 ideas for developing family-responsive schools, and 15…

Noting that parents are children's most important teachers, this guide provides parents and children with weekly activities for all parts of the year that are intended to enhance children's eagerness to learn. The suggested activities, carefully chosen by Medina County, Ohio, kindergarten teachers, were designed to reinforce skills introduced in…

This publication is designed to provide guidance, clarification of intent, and suggested implementation processes and procedures for officials of postsecondary educational institutions concerning the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), as Amended in 1988 and 1993. FERPA's purpose is to ensure certain student rights…

This handbook, written by the principal of an urban elementary school that serves a diverse student population in a low socioeconomic area, offers strategies for principals who wish to increase parent involvement in their schools. Chapter 1 presents a brief history of parent involvement in American public schools over the past 60 years. The next…

This paper describes a school-home reading project that was developed to support culturally and linguistically diverse beginning readers, and offers practical suggestions for starting such a program. First-grade classrooms from 5 Chapter 1 schools in a large suburban school district are participating in the project. Teachers in these classrooms…

California's Healthy Start initiative, begun in 1991, awards grants to local groups of schools and public and private organizations to collaboratively plan and implement strategies to integrate services for children and families, which are provided at or through the school. This paper presents findings of a study that examined whether…

The East Coast Migrant Head Start Project serves a diverse population of approximately 7,400 migrant children and their families as they traverse the East Coast from Florida to Maine. These families live a unique lifestyle and come from varied backgrounds that differ from the dominant culture. To meet the project goals, new teachers as well as…

A study of 24 elementary, middle, and high schools conducted by the Center on Organization and Restructuring of Schools (CORS) found that simply adding school-based support services to bureaucratically organized schools is unlikely to prove effective, and does not necessarily produce better student achievement. However, the research linked schools…

While Europe is experiencing new transnationalism based on technical economic links, European preschool education is not as accommodating to multicultural growth as economic growth has been. In many schools, children are forced to learn and interact in a language foreign to them. This break with their mother tongue is also a break with maternal…

Residential treatment for alcohol/drug abuse may be a significant event in an adolescent's life. School counselors may further the experience by developing familiarity with available treatment programs. Having all available options at hand, a client or family can make a choice, thereby gaining an investment in the treatment decision. In order to…

Dramatic changes in the economic and political structure of the Czech Republic in recent years have challenged schools to transform themselves from closed institutions into open organizations that collaborate with families and communities. This study explored the questions: (1) Are changes in school/family relations really occurring? (2) What are…

Interviews with 265 low-income women examined demographic factors, maternal and child educational experiences, and social support factors, with a focus on urban-rural differences. The women lived in Kansas, Tennessee, Texas, and Florida, and ranged in age from 16 to 55; 94 percent had children and 80 percent were not currently married. The results…

Research shows that family involvement in education leads to long-term achievement, positive attitudes, and more effective schools. Families can participate in the schools in a number of ways. Parent involvement begins with teaching in the home when the child is small and continues through preschool programs. Once the child is ready for public…

The truancy problem has become one of the most troubling issues that school administrators face while attempting to reform public education. This paper describes the legal evolution of efforts to reduce school truancy and the economic impact of truancy on society. Solutions range from reducing the number of required years of schooling to…