Parents

Education news, analysis, and opinion about how parents and other family members interact with schools and their children’s education
Miranda Scully, Director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, serves food to students and parents during a ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes. Family engagement is crucial for COVID recovery, but not all in the education field define it in the same way.
Miranda Scully, director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, serves food to students and parents during a ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Michael Swensen for Education Week
Families & the Community How to Go Deeper on Family Engagement
There is a discrepancy in understanding what family engagement is and how it can be utilized to support schools in their COVID recovery efforts, according to a new report.
Jennifer Vilcarino, June 23, 2025
•
5 min read
Image of a parent and child reading together at home.
iStock/Getty
Reading & Literacy Fewer Parents Are Reading Aloud to Their Kids. Why That Matters
Pleasure reading is the best way for emerging readers to maintain their skills in the summer. Getting parents on board can be challenging.
Elizabeth Heubeck, June 12, 2025
•
5 min read
Los Angeles police officers with batons and riot gear attempt to move back protesters in downtown Los Angeles on June 9, 2025.
Los Angeles police officers with batons and riot gear attempt to move back protesters in downtown Los Angeles on June 9, 2025. Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the district's police force planned to set up "perimeters of safety" around graduation ceremonies this week amid immigration raids in the city, protests, and the activation of National Guard troops and Marines.
Eric Thayer/AP
School & District Management How Los Angeles Schools Are Responding to the ICE Raids and Protests
The school year in Los Angeles is ending amid immigration raids, protests, and the activation of National Guard troops and Marines.
Caitlynn Peetz & Ileana Najarro, June 10, 2025
•
4 min read
Photograph of the front of a schoo lbus driving on a country road with trees, fencing, and a yellow sign reading School Bus Stop Ahead.
iStock/Getty
Families & the Community The Low-Cost, Low-Lift Way These Districts Used to Reduce Student Absences
Dozens of districts tested this strategy as one component of their absenteeism-fighting strategy.
Caitlynn Peetz, June 6, 2025
•
6 min read
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon meets with students during a visit to Vertex Partnership Academies in New York on March 7, 2025.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon meets with students during a visit to Vertex Partnership Academies in New York City on March 7, 2025.
Courtesy of U.S. Department of Education
Equity & Diversity Opinion Let DEI Practices Die. Replace Them With Something Better
Individual student agency enabled by strong families and schools can lead students to success, writes a researcher.
Robert Maranto, June 5, 2025
•
5 min read
Image of a school bus driving on the road in the rain.
Willowpix/iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being What School Leaders Learned When They Talked to Families About Absenteeism
A district enlisted its community to find out why students were missing school and responded accordingly.
Caitlynn Peetz, June 4, 2025
•
5 min read
A principal watches her multilingual student leaders present a supportive buddy system to a room full of educators on May 29, 2024 in New York City.
A principal watches her multilingual student leaders present a supportive buddy system to a room full of educators on May 29, 2024 in New York City. The district boasts school-based teams called Dream Squads that conduct outreach to immigrant families over the summer.
Courtesy of New York City Public Schools
School & District Management How Schools Are Reaching Immigrant Families Over Summer
Experts advise district leaders to stay up to date on immigration policy changes.
Ileana Najarro, May 30, 2025
•
4 min read
A phone holder hangs in a classroom at Delta High School, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, in Delta, Utah. At the rural Utah school, there is a strict policy requiring students to check their phones at the door when entering every class. Each of the school's 30 or so classrooms has a cellphone storage unit that looks like an over-the-door shoe bag with three dozen smartphone-sized slots.
A phone holder hangs in a classroom at Delta High School, Feb. 23, 2024, in Delta, Utah. At the rural Utah school, like in schools across the country, there is a strict policy requiring students to check their phones at the door when entering every class.
Rick Bowmer/AP
Ed-Tech Policy Cellphone Ban Adopters Share How They Did It—and How It's Changed Students
School administrators detail how they got staff, students, and parents to believe in new, stricter cellphone policies.
Elizabeth Heubeck, May 28, 2025
•
6 min read
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, delivers closing remarks and applauds students for their work during the Power of We event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, delivers closing remarks and applauds students for their work during the Power of We event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Parker Michels-Boyce for Education Week
Families & the Community ‘Where Are Your Blind Spots?’: How Schools Can Create a Sense of Belonging
District leaders share their advice for creating frameworks to help students feel like they belong in their schools.
Ileana Najarro, May 27, 2025
•
3 min read
Families & the Community Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Much Do You Know About Building Strong School & Home Connections?
Answer 7 questions about building strong family and school connections.
May 27, 2025
A group of students follows their role models towards a bright STEM future.
Danny Allison for Education Week
Science Q&A Teachers, Parents, or Peers: Who Motivates Students Most to Pursue STEM?
Encouragement from adults—like teachers, school counselors, and parents—is crucial for motivating students in STEM.
Arianna Prothero, May 27, 2025
•
4 min read
A student and parent look into a landscape of many roads and opportunities.
Danny Allison for Education Week
Student Achievement From Our Research Center Many Kids' Parents Didn't Go to College. You Can Still Motivate Them in STEM
Students whose parents did not go to college often do not feel they have the necessary support to excel STEM subjects.
Jennifer Vilcarino, May 27, 2025
•
6 min read
Tightly cropped photo of a mother or teacher holding holding a young elementary school boy's hands as they sit on school steps, offering comfort and support. The boy is wearing a bookbag.
E+
School & District Management From Our Research Center What Schools Do When Parents Don't Pick Up Their Kids
What schools do when parents don't pick up their kids can vary considerably, according to a new survey by the EdWeek Research Center.
Arianna Prothero, May 23, 2025
•
3 min read
Inclusive education in action, a boy and girl with Down syndrome participate in classroom activities, working side by side at a table as they complete their individual projects.
Courtney Hale/E+
Special Education How Trump's Policies Are Already Upending Special Education
The special ed. field is watching anxiously as the administration cuts grants and research contracts while threatening further disruption.
Mark Lieberman, May 20, 2025
•
11 min read
Load More ▼
OSZAR »