Leadership Brief: Defining Our Work: Families Learning Together

This paper, “Defining Our Work: Families Learning Together”, describes the NCFL signature models and defines the terms family literacy, family learning, and family engagement from our perspective.

The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) shifted the focus from parent involvement to family engagement. To this end, NCFL has identified a three-tiered approach to family engagement. This approach aligns intensity and duration of services with families’ needs and desires, and is driven by family, academic, and community-focused goals. The models within the tiers are designed to make a significant difference for families and help lift them out of poverty. They are based on evidence, founded in results from third-party evaluations and research projects, and informed by families.