Building Three-Way Communication: The Leader's Role in Linking School, Families and Community.

The authors assert that part of a school's mission is to develop a partnership with families and with the community at large. Furthermore, school leaders must understand the need for attitudinal changes and the ingredients for overcoming barriers that may prevent such progress.

Building Three-Way Communication is an insightful exploration of why home-school-community partnerships are so difficult to create and why they often fail despite a wealth of research that demonstrates the many advantages of these partnerships. The authors provide field-tested and practical suggestions for school leaders who wish to begin building such alliances, and list case studies of successful programs.

They suggest strategies for parent-teacher conferences, creating a school handbook and newsletters, encouraging parent education, developing plans for volunteerism, enlisting community and parental involvement and building strong public awareness.

Each chapter ends with a brief set of questions designed to help educators examine their own values and commitment to establishing and maintaining a climate of partnership. School leaders can use these strategies to develop a comprehensive school-wide plan and take realistic steps toward building a comprehensive program for parent and community involvement. Reviewed by Vandana Sharma, Education Coordinator, AIU/Allegheny County Head Start, Pittsburgh, PA