Describes a study that investigates the perceived academic self-efficacy of first-generation students at a large Midwest community college. Indicates that first-generation students have lower self-perceptions of their academic ability than students whose parents have some college experience. Contains one data table and 12 references. (JDI)

A psychoeducational support group program was established for aging parents of 30 adult offspring with developmental disabilities, of whom 17 resided with the parents. This article describes the program's development, parents' self-reported objectives for participating, comparison of parents with and parents without their offspring at home, and…

The language and conversational skills of young children with delayed language development can be fostered by using specific strategies in small-group story reading, including praising children's talk, expanding children's words, asking open-ended questions, and pausing for children to initiate. Teachers are encouraged to train parents to use the…

A study investigated why some of the low-income single caregivers of 104 children (ages 7-40 months) with disabilities were more involved in early intervention services than others. Difficulties in family functioning and lower levels of knowledge about child development were directly related to caregiver involvement. (Contains references.)…

As the male prison population increases, so too does the number of children with fathers in prison. The negative impact of fatherlessness on children has been well documented. While parenting education is often seen as an effective tool to improve the quality of family relationships and foster positive outcomes for children, fathers in prison…

This study aimed to investigate the experiences of mothers participating in MOCEP in Istanbul, through a qualitative research methodology. Overall effectiveness of the programme, its implementation and how the mothers benefited were the main concerns. The study was carried out with 20 mothers. Individual and focus interviews, participant…

Teachers and administrators interested in special education topics are seeking educational opportunities for professional development in order to better meet the needs of students, but face obstacles such as time and distance in attending face-to-face instruction. Distance delivery and more specifically offering courses online, is a very viable…

During the 1998-1999 academic year, the authors' state board of teaching changed the licensure configurations in early childhood from Birth to Age 5 to Birth through Age 8. This made early childhood teacher licensure commensurate with the National Association for the Education of Young Children's recommendation that an early childhood program is…

Objective: The purpose of this research was to examine the secondary and tertiary prevention of child abuse and neglect through an evaluation of the Parent Aide Program at the Child Abuse Prevention Center in Dallas, Texas. Method: Using a quasi-experimental, retrospective research design, this project compared abuse recidivism rates for those…

Chronic non-attendance has generally focused on the distinction between truancy and school refusal: the former has traditionally been linked to conduct disorder, the latter to separation anxiety disorder. However, research has demonstrated that truancy and school refusal exist in the absence of such disorders and, more significantly, that some…

The authors developed and evaluated an online foster parent training system designed specifically for low-bandwidth Internet connections and individuals with limited Internet/computer experience. After preliminary onsite evaluations, a 2-week field test was conducted to evaluate the following dimensions: foster parents' pre- to post-test scores on…

In this paper, we conceptualize and develop an index of sociodemographic risk that we hypothesize will be an improvement over the standard poverty measure as a measure of risk for children's development. The poverty line is widely used in government statistics and in research but is also widely acknowledged to have multiple shortcomings. Using…

In 1997, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation created a national education initiative, ENLACE (pronounced en-LAH-say), ENgaging LAtino Communities for Education. Its goal is to increase access and success in higher education for Latino students and their families. The ENLACE approach described in this document starts with partnerships as the vehicle for…

A pre-postassessment, single-subject, pilot study was implemented, testing the hypothesis that positive behavior support (PBS) would improve family quality-of-life outcomes by reducing parental stress and challenging behaviors of preschool children who are culturally and linguistically diverse and reside in urban, disadvantaged communities. Six…

The study in this article investigated how academic preparation, career development skills, parental assistance, and social/environmental barriers predicted inner-city adolescents' psychological preparation to transition into high school. Results showed that academic preparation, parents' instrumental assistance, adolescents' career development…