Journal article
Negotiating family-centered early education: A multidimensional assessment of interests and needs
Early child development and care, v 113(1), pp 45-58
01 Jan 1995
Abstract
Reform efforts in early childhood education highlight recommendations to adopt more family-centered practices, including greater family support functions. Yet, there is little research on the processes through which schools develop family-centered programs that are responsive to the participating children and families. This study examines program development priorities from the perspectives of school staff and families. Fifty-three (53) school staff members and one hundred and ninety (190) family members responded to quantitative and qualitative surveys to describe their beliefs about the strategies that two urban public schools should undertake in developing family-centered early childhood programs. Results revealed important differences between the staff and family perspectives. Staff advocated direct methods of assisting families, such as parent education, and expressed comparatively little consideration for informal aspects of family support (e.g., informal staff-parent relationships; parent-child recreation). Families set a priority on receiving support for their informal family functions, and perceived an important role for schools to assume in providing referral information for community resources rather than in providing direct school-based assistance. The results indicated the need for greater staff training in: a) the processes of delivering relationship-based, consumer-driven family services; and b) the utilization of family input to inform schools' instructional activities.
*Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA, April, 1994. Portions of this research were funded by the W.K. Kelloggand the Helen Bader Foundations.
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2 citations in Scopus
Details
- Title
- Negotiating family-centered early education: A multidimensional assessment of interests and needs
- Creators
- Christine Burton-Maxwell - University of Wisconsin - MilwaukeeDominic F. Gullo - University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
- Publication Details
- Early child development and care, v 113(1), pp 45-58
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis Group
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Education
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-84888934401
- Other Identifier
- 991020531944304721