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This paper describes a community-based after-school tutoring project, where families are participants together with their children. There are 50 family members involved in the project, several have multiple children enrolled, and four families were selected for an in-depth case study. The goals of this mixed method study were to determine why parents persist at endeavors such as these with their children who struggle in school, and how schools of education can effectively incorporate families as an essential constituent in teacher education. Findings indicated that all families engaged in the project reported the positive impact of the project on their children's academic learning and growth in confidence. In addition, families reported ways they learned to engage in their children's learning processes. This meaningful engagement was reported as one of the key reasons that motivated families to stay involved.

The purpose of this study was to develop a model for evaluating a professional development school program to enact an evidence-based model for a continuous cycle of program improvement. Guided by the logic model for program evaluation, we developed three survey instruments based on the professional development school standards of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education to collect feedback from seniors just completing the program, from their cooperating teachers, and from program graduates completing their 3rd year of teaching. A total of 115 seniors, 135 cooperating teachers, and 38 graduates completed the surveys. Based on the quantitative and qualitative data from this study, adjustments were made to the program. The findings also provided a baseline for future professional development school program evaluation. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)

Teacher education programs do not generally provide opportunities for preservice teachers to work with parents. As a result, these novice teachers often leave their teacher education programs with little or no information about how to successfully interact with parents. This article details the actions of parents during a reading course that was purposefully designed to bring preservice teachers into direct contact with children who find reading daunting, and with the parents of those children. Additionally, the article highlights the "preservice teachers' reactions to the parents' actions."

A partnership between the University of North Carolina and Hunter Elementary School in Greensboro attempts to close the achievement gap for low-income students and simultaneously the gap between the skills teachers should possess and the quality of training they receive. The partnership follows the professional development school (PDS) model and has already achieved both short-term and long-term success.