The literature reveals several requirements for competency in parenthood, including a sense of self-worth, knowledge of child development, a capacity for intimacy or caring, a commitment to the interests of the child, and resources in the form of financial and emotioal support networks. Today's parents need education because they lack practical experience to prepare them to raise their own children. Formal delivery systems for adult parent education include individual counseling and lectures with or without discussion and experiential learning. All forms depend on capable leadership and usually have a theoretical foundation to structure the content. Programs often use a middle-class model that fails to recognize the needs and skills of the parent population. Parent education for youth is a recent development. It is usually directed to pregnant teenagers and adolescent mothers or is offered as a school course. Overall, parent education remains an optional activity for adults and youth. Whether or not the child abuse issue will be the catalyst for universal parent education is unknown, although many parent education courses address the known causes of child abuse. The challenge now is to synthesize child abuse prevention strategies with a holistic, positive image of parenthood and children in a cumulative curriculum for kindergarten through 12th grade to help peole flourish in their immediate and future families. Reference notes and 70 references