Parent & Community Engagement
This document presents the Federal Government’s five-year strategic plan for STEM education, based on a vision for a future where all Americans will have lifelong access to high-quality STEM education and the United States will be the global leader in STEM literacy, innovation, and employment. The plan accordingly strengthens the Federal commitment to equity and diversity, to evidence-based practice, and […]
Contrary to popular assumption – mathematics is not culture-free. This Harvard Family Research Practice post, created in partnership with TODOS: Mathematics for ALL (TODOS), an international organization that advocates for equity and high-quality mathematics education for all students, particularly those who are Latino or Latina, delves into how mathematics teachers can establish equitable, rigorous, and coherent mathematics programs in their classrooms.
In the past 20 years, parents have taken to heart public-awareness campaigns urging them to read to their children every night. But math initiatives have not gained as much traction—even as emerging evidence suggests early math may be one of the most critical school-readiness skills.
Schools that engage families find that their students have higher grades, show faster rates of literacy acquisition, attend school more regularly and are more likely to graduate. Since 1994, when the United States Department of Education released the Strong Families, Strong Schools report, a growing body of research has continued to support the conclusion that family engagement is a key factor in […]
This call to action by the Harvard Family Research Project and Public Library Association may surface some new ideas among ecosystems interested in improving family engagement by tapping the power of their libraries. The new report Public Libraries: A Vital Space for Family Engagement, is a call to action focused on strengthening the role of libraries in engaging families. The […]
The National Center on Time & Learning (NCTL) released a new report about its work with five expanded-time schools, each paired with a science-focused community-based organization, to embed new, imaginative STEM programming in a redesigned and expanded school day. Each of the schools, which received a modest planning grant and technical assistance coaching from NCTL, have created their own program […]
This report by the Afterschool Alliance using America After 3 data provides the first comprehensive look at parental perceptions of STEM programming offered by afterschool providers and examines demand, access and satisfaction both nationally and by state. Among the report’s recommendations is strengthening partnerships between the larger STEM education community and afterschool programs to increase and improve afterschool STEM programming.
Providing children with access to high-quality STEM experiences is challenging—sharing those experiences with parents can be even more difficult. This Harvard Family Research Project brief explains how one Texas school district is bringing family engagement to a whole new level with a STEM career-focused mobile curriculum.
