Afterschool Alliance Research

Digital Media & Learning in Afterschool (February 2013)

The Afterschool Alliance, in partnership with MetLife Foundation, is proud to present the last of four issue briefs in our fifth series examining critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. This brief discusses the growing importance of digital media and technology in education, the "digital divide" between high- and low-income communities, and the many opportunities and challenges the afterschool field faces with implementing equitable digital learning.

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English Language Learners: Becoming Fluent in Afterschool (2011)

English Language Learners (ELLs), a diverse group of individuals from across the world who are learning English for the first time, make up the fastest growing segment of the student population in United States public schools. This issue brief displays how the extra time and hands-on learning experiences provided by quality afterschool programs can allow for a specialized, less-formal learning environment in which ELLs can develop language and social skills that otherwise could not be addressed through the less flexible schedule of the regular school day.

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Evaluations Backgrounder 

A compilation of evaluations of afterschool programs looking at academic outcomes, student behavior and parental concerns about children’s safety.

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Evaluations Backgrounder: A Summary of Formal Evaluations of Afterschool Programs' Impact on Academics, Behavior, Safety and Family Life (2011)

The most recent evaluations available today continue to support the important role afterschool plays in student development and success. This updated evaluations backgrounder includes new research, from the local to national scale, demonstrating the impact of afterschool programs on participants’ academic achievement, behavior, safety, and wellness, as well as the support they provide working families.

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Evaluations Backgrounder: A Summary of Formal Evaluations of Afterschool Programs' Impact on Academics, Behavior, Safety and Family Life (2013)

Afterschool programs have been operating across the country for decades, and federal investment in afterschool has increased dramatically since the mid-1990s. Still, more investment is needed to meet growing demand.  As public demand and need for afterschool have grown, so too has the demand for accountability. This backgrounder contains research demonstrating the impact of afterschool programs on participant's academic achievement, behavior, safety, and overall wellness.

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Evaluations Backgrounder: A Summary of Formal Evaluations of Afterschool Programs’ Impact on Academics, Behavior, Safety and Family Life (2015)

The most recent evaluations available today continue to support the important role afterschool plays in student development and success. This updated evaluations backgrounder includes new research outlining the positive impacts of afterschool programs on academic performances, behavior, safety, attendance, avoidance of risky behaviors and parental involvement, and the importance of frequency and duration of participation in seeing these benefits.

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Expanding Learning Opportunities: It Takes More than Time (2007)

Recent pressure to increase academic achievement has led new educational reform strategies to include ideas on extending the school day. However, increased classroom time alone may not be enough to improve academic outcomes. This brief examines the high-quality afterschool program model and the goals of the extended school day movement, seeking to identify the role the afterschool program model can play in informing the implementation of a quality extended day initiative.

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FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS two pager

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From Prevention to Diversion: The Role of Afterschool in the Juvenile Justice System (May 2020)

Involvement with the juvenile justice system can have devastating impacts for youth, their families, and their communities. Through a broad spectrum of services and supports, the afterschool field has leveraged the out of school hours to help keep young people out of the juvenile justice system. From building protective factors that promote resiliency to serving as diversion programs that function as alternatives to detention, afterschool programs can be an essential part of the work to support the young people at risk of becoming involved or currently involved with the juvenile justice system and help reframe and redirect their futures. In addition, in-depth afterschool program profiles that demonstrate these range of supportive roles that programs can play complement this issue brief:

• Promise South Salt Lake: Connecting youth to supports in the community
• Burlington Expanded Learning Opportunities: Instituting restorative practices to build community and mitigate harm
• The Center for Restorative Youth Justice and Evolution Youth Services: Serving as diversion programs that provide alternatives to detention

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Summary

Full STEM Ahead: Afterschool Programs Step Up as Key Partners in STEM Education (Sept 2015)

This report provides the first national look at access to afterschool STEM programs and parental attitudes towards such programs by outlining survey findings, identifying current challenges, and providing recommendations to improve afterschool STEM programming in the future. Full STEM Ahead is presented as part of the third edition of America After 3PM, which spans a decade of household survey data chronicling how children spend the hours between 3 and 6 p.m.

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Executive Summary