This article evaluates the educational voucher system and how it may solve effectiveness and efficiency problems of the educational system through market accountability. Educational goals and state and community roles in reaching these goals are discussed. Comments by Richard J. Murnane and Edwin G. West are given. (DF)

Provides sources of aid and encouragement for parents of children of all ages who want to help their children develop positive attitudes toward reading and sharpen their reading skills. (FL)

Reports figures indicating a rise in teenage suicide in Canada. Shows how the problem is compounded by silence resulting from official and parent reactions and social taboo. Discusses some of the causes of teenage suicide and explains the role of the school and family in suicide intervention and prevention. (SB)

Like the family, the schools may be viewed as a self-contained social system with a unique organization and unique patterns of expectations that are binding on its members. The article reviews why it is becoming increasingly difficult for the school to stand in as surrogate for the family. (MH)

Discusses the development of a measure for enabling counselors and educators to identify and help women experiencing inhibiting or depressing levels of conflict. Describes a study using discriminant analysis to compare the relative importance of activity, affect, and event variables for women majoring in traditional careers and those majoring in…

Students who drop out of school face a difficult future. For students with disabilities, the risks are intensified. Their dropout rate is about 40 percent--more than twice that of their peers without disabilities. However, families can play an important role in making sure their student with or without disabilities graduates. This brief provides…

An ever-increasing proportion of high school students in the United States today aspire to graduate from college. Yet statistics indicate that the percentage of college students receiving bachelor's degrees has remained relatively constant over the past 25 years, that it now takes on average 6 years to get a four-year college degree, and that…

Noting that the roots of reading and writing begin long before children enter school and that parents set the stage for the development of reading and writing skills, this booklet explains the ways children read and write in their early years and what parents can do to support their child's learning. Based on the High/Scope preschool key…

This instructional video is designed for schools, teachers, and community groups as a tool for encouraging refugee and immigrant parents to communicate with their children's school. The video focuses on the willingness of school personnel to meet with parents to discuss their child's education needs. The video includes sample conversations between…

Noting that a substantial research literature on fathers has been built over the last 20 years and that fathers can no longer be considered "the forgotten parent" of the scientific community, this paper summarizes key research on fathers while highlighting concerns regarding the current emphasis on fatherhood expressed by parents and…

U.S. educators recognize that the study of history is a vital part of a child's overall education and that parents are in the best position to encourage their children's natural interest in history. This booklet is designed as a tool for parents to use in stimulating their children's interest in and knowledge about history. The booklet includes:…

Increasingly, foreign nationals living in Japan are sending their children to Japanese elementary schools. This requires that the children's native language be taught outside of school, most often at home. While teaching oral language is not difficult for parents, teaching reading requires different skills. Some difficulties in this process are…

This paper asserts that any intellectually responsible program to instruct young children in math, science, and technology must overcome at least three seemingly insurmountable obstacles: (1) adults' inability to discover, either by reflection or analysis, the means by which children acquire science and technology concepts; (2) the fact that young…

A study focused on involving parents in a reading workshop to teach parents strategies used in their child's classroom. Subjects consisted of 11 parents (who were already highly involved in their child's classroom) of first-grade children from an affluent elementary school in central Virginia who agreed to participate in the workshop. Parents…

This document presents findings from interviews conducted to obtain information on changes that have occurred in state Special Education Advisory Panels (SEAPs) since the passage of the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The interviews investigated general organizational changes, SEAP involvement in the…