This paper describes a funded project, Families and Neighborhood Schools (FANS), which provided coordinated services for selected at-risk middle school students. The FANS project, based at Bryson Middle School in Greenville County School District, South Carolina, collaborated with the county mental health center to offer school-based mental health…

School-initiated activities to change the home educational environment can strongly influence student learning, even in schools serving low-income and minority families. This sourcebook shows various ways that schools can take the initiative in reaching out and working with families as equal partners; and explores how family life, school programs,…

A study investigated low-income children's book reading experiences with their mothers and in group reading in preschool when the children were 3 and 4 years old. At the age of 3 years, the primary focus of book readings in both settings was immediate information. Mothers were significantly more likely than teachers to use extending comments, and…

This report presents the findings of a study conducted for the U.S. Department of Education that analyzed 17 family education programs for disadvantaged families. In-depth studies were conducted on-site for 7 programs; an additional 10 programs were studied via telephone interviews. An "Executive Summary" of eleven pages (also separately…

This report examines the condition of America's young adolescents and how well middle grade schools, health institutions, and community organizations serve them. In its plan for action, the Task Force on Education of Young Adolescents of the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development makes recommendations for new structures for middle grade…

This report describes factors distinguishing rural families with special-needs children and their communities from those in non-rural settings. Rural communities have distinct environments and unique strengths and weaknesses, differing even among themselves. A diversity among rural lifestyles, values, resources, and other socio-cultural factors…

This literature review focuses on the characteristics of children who are technology supported and on the experiences of families who have undertaken home care of such children. It presents information on: (1) medical, cognitive, physical, and socio-emotional characteristics of the children; (2) experiences within the family; and (3) family…

The digest summarizes major characteristics of American Indian student needs in the disciplines of science and math and offers constructive ways in which students may be motivated for greater achievement. Motivational, attitudinal, and behavioral factors contributing to avoidance of science and math by American Indian students are identified:…

Although increased communication between school personnel and parents is now widely held to be beneficial, present knowledge is based principally on nonsystematic studies at the preschool and primary levels that are of questionable validity at the secondary level. To make up for the lack of emphasis in previous research on establishing specific…

The goal of the Home-School-Community Agents (HSCA) Program is to help disruptive pupils make a positive adjustment to those elements in their lives which interfere with their success in school. In 1982-83, 20 HSCA served 8 high schools and 12 middle schools in Columbus, Ohio. Each agent worked in depth with approximately 60 descriptive pupils and…

The report reviews Idaho's Migrant Education Program, which served 6,786 migrant children in programs hosted by 33 districts during the regular term and 3,302 children in summer schools in 28 locations. Following a listing of national and state goals for migrant education is a summary of specific objectives stated in the State Plan, strategies…

Children in a family system establish their identities through the interplay of roles and relationships. As they move from home into school, children become a part of another system. Both systems overlap and events in one system may affect the child's behavior in the other system. A systematic understanding of a child's behavior considers the…

This report studies the specific attributes of educational disadvantage which prevent satisfactory achievement in New Hampshire children. It is based on a sample of approximately 10 percent of the state school districts, which are divided into three levels of economic status, three levels of achievement, and an urban, suburban, or rural category.…

The Phase II study of the Florida Migratory Child Survey Project had as its primary focus the data obtained directly from migratory workers and public schools. Major objectives of the 12-month study were (1) to obtain an accurate count of migratory workers and children in each Florida county, (2) to determine movement patterns of migratory…

The current literature on year-round education is replete with feasibility studies; reports on operational programs; and thoughtful consideration of the potential effects of year-round education on the community, school, family, and child. Lay boards of education are frequently asked to make decisions on whether to implement year-round programs on…