Even Start family literacy programs are integrated adult education, early childhood education, and parent support components intended to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty and low literacy. In Spring of 2002, a follow-up study of one Even Start project was conducted to assess the long-term effects of Even Start programming for families.…

In recognition that character and knowledge are critical to shaping the whole child, the state of Wisconsin has made a commitment to developing partnerships to ensure that home and school build upon their mutual efforts with children and youth. This guide offers practical, useful strategies, tools, and examples of "what works" for…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004 established a requirement that all states develop and submit to the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) a performance plan designed to improve the educational and functional outcomes for children with disabilities. The state plan must…

The papers in this collection were written by an interdisciplinary group to address two main questions: What conditions deter young 'involvement in politics and civic life? What reforms could enhance youth engagement? Most of the contributors met face-to-face in Washington, DC in March 2005 to discuss their papers and the general issue of youth…

In this California state curriculum model for grade 6, "World History and Geography: Ancient Civilization," students learn that religious ideas have inspired and influenced the lives and actions of men and women, including Cesar Chavez. They see how his unselfishness, compassion for others, tolerance, and nonviolence have roots reaching…

Place-based education roots learning in real issues and needs and helps students become both academic achievers and good citizens. This article profiles programs in five states that are fostering academic achievement. The Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative (AKRSI) links Alaska Native culture and indigenous knowledge with the formal educational…

This collection of papers shows the significant achievements that can be made through collective strategies that empower the poor to become active partners in revitalizing their neighborhoods. The 12 chapters are: (1) "The Role of Social Capital in Combating Poverty" (Mark R. Warren, J. Phillip Thompson, and Susan Saegert); (2) "Social Capital and…

Decreased civic and political participation is a pressing problem in the United States. Today, Americans are less likely to vote, work for a party or candidate, attend a meeting, or belong to a social or community organization than they were 40 years ago. A study used the Community Indicators Survey, a nationally representative sample of 1,206…

The High/Scope Curriculum is a developmentally based approach to early childhood education. This curriculum's "Extensions" newsletter, in which the articles in this collection first appeared, informs curriculum users about new development, relating to the High/Scope "open framework" curriculum. This collection divides the…

The aim of school councils in New South Wales (Australia) is to ensure that the whole community is involved in all important decisions made by the school. The impetus for school councils began in 1990, and in 1995 the Department of School Education placed their formation on its priority agenda in response to their slow rate of establishment. Two…

The success of the Minimbah Aboriginal Preschool in New South Wales (Australia) is evidenced by happy staff and children, low staff turnover, and the later success of Minimbah's children in mainstream schools. Also, parents were frequently present as helpers and were apparently confident in entering the premises, talking with staff members, and…

This videotape explains common vision tests used with infants with multiple disabilities, shows how to gather information from parents on their children's use of vision, and demonstrates selected early intervention strategies for encouraging infants and young children with multiple disabilities to use their vision in functional ways. The videotape…

The effects of participation in extracurricular activities on young women's career and educational development were examined. A constant comparative method was used to analyze the open-ended responses to questionnaires completed by 156 high school girls and the transcripts from semi-structured interviews with 5 female college freshmen and 2 young…

This publication is intended to help foundation program officers, educators, and organizers use the Education Organizing Indicators Framework to understand the contribution that community organizing makes to school reform. The Framework is the product of a study that examined five community groups to document how organized groups of parents and…

This curriculum guide discusses civic responsibility, how it is tied to service learning, how faculty can integrate concepts and exercises in a practical way, and how faculty can assess the development of civic responsibility in their students. Civic responsibility is defined here as active participation in the public life of a community, in an…