Deeper_Dive_into_Afterschool

Dosage (Focused)Sufficient time participating in an afterschool program—which includes both attendance in aprogram and engagement in the program’s activities—is a critical piece of a program’s ability tohave a positive influence on youth participants. 50 An evaluation of the New York CityDepartment of Youth and Community Development’s (DYCD) Out-of-School Time Programs forYouth found that students participating in the program for at least two years reported betterexperiences in school, greater confidence in their academic ability and more positive attitudestoward school than their peers who were in their first year of the program. 51Program organization (Sequenced and Explicit)A program’s ability to establish clear goals and develop well-defined activities that align withthe goals and mission of the organization is another important component of program quality.For instance, an evaluation of the James Irvine Foundation’s Communities Organizing Resourcesto Advance Learning (CORAL) sites found that when programs established specific goals,developing focused activities and deciding on the staff necessary to carry out the activitiessubsequently followed, resulting in higher quality programming. 52 Similarly, a study of TASCfound that students saw greater gains in their math and ELA test scores when the sitecoordinator required staff to submit lesson plans compared to students in programs where thecoordinator did not require lesson plans. 53In SEDL’s “Building and Managing Quality Afterschool Programs,” a five year study examininghigh-quality afterschool programs, program organization and academic programming practiceswere two focus areas considered necessary for successful and effective afterschool programs.Practices under program organization included strong leadership who can, among other things,clearly convey the program’s mission and goals to staff, children and families; while academicprogramming practices included activities aligned with the goals of the organization anddesigned with specific goals in mind for students participating in the program to achieve. 54Staff QualityMuch like the studies on students’ school day performance that have found teacher quality tohave a substantial effect, 55 studies of afterschool programs link the ability of a program topositively impact student outcomes with the capabilities of program staff. 56Positive relationshipsAfterschool program staff are mentors, role models and support systems for children and youthattending afterschool programs. Positive afterschool program staff-student relationshipscreate an environment in which students feel safe and supported, fostering student growthsocially, emotionally and academically. 57 Positive relationships between program staff andprogram participants have been shown to improve students’ academic performance 58 andengagement in school, as well as lead to higher educational and future aspirations. 5918