Family literacy, and a similar concept called intergenerational learning, focus on a "strengths-based" approach to education. The strengths-based practice of respecting the family's cultural background while meeting the parents' educational goals started in the 1970s and has rapidly gained support in recent years. Family literacy programs represent a fundamental change in the way educators are trying to reach families by breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty and low literacy. Programs attempt to tackle two frustrating and interlocked educational problems: the under-education of adults and the under-education of children [1].
Family literacy programs typically include three components [10; 11]:

1. Adult education: The parents' educational goals are identified and the family literacy teacher works with the parents to help achieve the goals, such as earning a GED, getting a job, or receiving specialized training. The teacher helps the adults achieve goals by working together on basic skills. Linking the parents to other adult education programs within the community is also important.

2. Parenting education: Parents learn new skills to guide and discipline their young children and ways to encourage and be involved in their child's education. Parents and Children Playing Together (PACT) is in an organized activity with other parents and trained caregivers and is an important part of the parenting education program [3; 10; 12].

3. Early childhood education: Participation standards require that the family have at least one child who is 8 years old or younger. The early childhood aspect of family literacy teaches parents how to encourage the young child's educational development and how to be involved in their child's education.

These three aspects of the family literacy program may be implemented differently from community to community. One reason why the programs may differ is that their goals have been adapted to their communities. However, inadequate funding or inadequate training may also account for some variation in programs [8; 12].

For example, the practice of home visiting-in which the family literacy teacher visits the child's home and offers parenting education and academic lessons with the parents and children-is a popular part of many family literacy programs. In some situations, home visitors may be asked to visit a large number of families or may be unprepared to respond to non-educational problems [2]. When teachers are unable to respond to the family's problems or when they must consistently use home visits to respond to social service needs-like poverty, substance abuse, or mental health issues, rather than educational goals-the home visiting component may not be successful in achieving family literacy goals [3; 8]. Effective family literacy home visits focus primarily on the parent's and the child's educational goals, although staff training and collaboration with social service agencies have also been linked to program effectiveness [12].

A review of experimental literature-and in particular research that includes randomized trials-suggests that successful programs use an integrated high-intensity approach and focus on clear short-term and long-term goals [2; 5; 7]. One example of an integrated approach to a family literacy program is the Kenan model. In programs that use this model, parents are expected to become involved in all three aspects of the program-parent literacy training, parenting education, and early childhood education-as well as human resource development that helps the parent learn job-seeking skills [12].

Kenan programs often share space in a public school building or community center-a strategy that encourages parents and children to attend school regularly. It also gradually helps them feel comfortable in a structured community setting. For many parents who have "dropped out," the school building may be associated with previous failures or bad experiences. Overcoming anxiety about entering the school or community center and participating fully in the program is a major accomplishment for uneasy parents. [1]

In integrated and high-intensity programs, staff members do everything possible to create a welcoming, supportive environment for the parents and children. Parents are expected to attend regular classes or participate in internships in the school or in the community. The internships are designed to meet the parents' individual educational goals. Preschool children are required to attend a structured preschool program three days a week, and school-aged children are required to be in school. Stimulating child care is provided for infants and toddlers. Parents also participate in weekly parenting classes where they can share parenting issues with other parents and learn about normal child development, discipline, family budgeting, and organization [1; 10].

The results of structured and integrated approaches have been very promising [1]. Studies in three states showed that children in the families who participated in Kenan model classes entered school ready to learn and were less likely to be retained in grade during their elementary school experience ([1], pp. 5-6). Teachers rated parents who participated in Kenan model classes as more involved with and positive about their children's education than parents who did not participate in the family literacy program. Parents also showed gains, including completing the program and achieving their primary goals. In one study, the results showed that more than half of the participants who had dropped out of previous adult literacy programs (or programs focusing only on adult education) persisted with the integrated family literacy approach. Some of the parents indicated that their desire to finish was due in part to individualized goals, the supportive structure of the classes, and caring teachers [1].

The flexibility to adapt to the individual needs of communities and families is one of the hallmarks of successful family literacy programs [5; 6]. Studies of other family literacy models, such as Even Start and Parents as Teachers, report some of the same results as the Kenan model [3; 12]. For example, parents involved in family literacy programs were more likely than parents in single-focus adult literacy programs to incorporate literacy activities-such as reading to their children at bedtime instead of watching TV-into their family routines ([9], p. 61).

Although educators agree that more research is needed to identify which literacy strategies are the best for children and parents over the long term [4; 6; 8], the short-term results are encouraging. For the family literacy teacher, gains are seen every day in the parent who takes that first step to attend class or completes his GED and internship successfully, or in the child who starts kindergarten with enthusiasm and stays engaged throughout her school experience. Family literacy teachers see their long-term successes as happening, slowly but surely, one family at a time.

For more information

Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council (GPLC)
100 Sheridan Sq.
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Telephone: 412-661-7323
Internet: http://trfn.clpgh.org/gplc/

National Even Start Association
2225 Camino del Rio South, Suite A
San Diego, CA 92108
Telephone: 800-977-3731
Internet: http://www.evenstart.org/

National Center for Family Literacy
Waterfront Plaza, Suite 200
325 W. Main St.
Louisville, KY 40202
Telephone: 502-584-1133
Internet: http://www.famlit.org/

ERIC/REC
Indiana University
Smith Research Center
2805 E. 10th St., Suite 150
Bloomington, IN 47408
Telephone: 800-925-7853
Internet: http://ericacve.org/

Family Literacy: An Annotated Bibliography
http://npin.org/library/2001/n00528/n00528.html

Families Learning Together: The Strength of Family Literacy
http://npin.org/pnews/1996/pnewd96/pnewd96c.html

Family Literacy: Respecting Family Ways
http://npin.org/library/2001/n00612/n00612.html

Family Support Programs and Family Literacy
http://npin.org/library/pre1998/n00247/n00247.html

Family Literacy Strategies to Support Children's Learning
http://npin.org/library/2000/n00459/n00459.html

Homevisiting: Bridging the Gap between a Family and the Community
http://npin.org/pnews/1997/pnew797/pnew797c.html

Sources

[1] Adult Literacy and Basic Skills Unit. (1993). Family literacy. Viewpoints: A series of occasional papers on basic education. London: Adult Literacy and Basic Skills Unit.

[2] Behrman, Richard E. (Ed.). (1993). Homevisiting [special issue]. Future of Children, 3(3).

[3] Dwyer, M. Christine. (1995). Guide to quality: Even Start family literacy programs. Portsmouth, NH: RMC Research. (ERIC Document No. ED393087)

[4] Hayes, Andrew. (1996). Longitudinal study of family literacy program outcomes [Online]. Available: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/FamLit/long.html

[5] National Center for Family Literacy. (n.d.). When families learn together. Louisville, KY: National Center for Family Literacy.

[6] National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). (2001). Adult and family literacy: Current research and future directions: A workshop summary [Online]. Available: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/crmc/cdb/AFL_workshop.htm

[7] Olds, David L., & Kitzman, Harriet. (1993). Review of research on home visiting for pregnant women and parents of young children. Future of Children, 3(3), 53-92.

[8] Padak, Nancy, & Rasinski, Tim. (1993). Research to practice: Family literacy programs: Getting started [Online]. Available: http://literacy.kent.edu/Oasis/Pubs/0200-5.htm

[9] Purcell-Gates, Victoria; and others. (1994). Relationships between parental literacy skills and functional uses of print and children's ability to learn literacy skills. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Graduate School of Education. (ERIC Document No. ED372288)

[10] Robertson, Anne S. (1996). Families learning together: The strength of family literacy. Parent News [Online], 2(12), 3. Available: http://npin.org/pnews/1996/pnewd96/pnewd96c.html

[11] Schwartz, Wendy. (1999). Family literacy strategies to support children's learning. New York: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education. (ERIC Document No. ED431063)

[12] Swick, Kevin J. (1994). A resource guide for developing parent education and family literacy programs in early childhood. Columbia, SC: Columbia College School Improvement Council Assistance for South Carolina's School Improvement Councils. (ERIC Document No. ED372847)