April 1999 After-School Programs Benefit Kids and Communities
In an age of single parents and double-income families, an increasing number of children are returning to empty houses after school each day, leaving many parents worried about the hours between the school dismissal bell and the end of the end of the work day. Are the kids safe? Are they getting their homework done? Who are they with? Faced with questions like these, parents and educators are turning to after-school programs to provide kids with activities and support in a supervised environment. After-School Programs: Good for Kids, Good for Communities (online at www.nwrel.org/request/jan99/index.html), the latest booklet in the Laboratory's "By Request" series, describes key components of after-school programs and highlights the benefits of quality programs for students, schools, and communities.
Authors Jed Schwendiman and Jennifer Fager of NWREL approach the topic broadly, first giving a historical overview of after-school programs and then using timely research to illustrate the growing need for such programs. The authors cite evidence that five to seven million students go home alone every day after school and are left without any adult supervision.
Researchers have demonstrated that school-age children and teens who are unsupervised during the after-school hours are at risk in a wide variety of areas. They are far more likely to use alcohol, drugs, and tobacco; engage in criminal and other high-risk behaviors; receive poor grades; and drop out of school than children who have the opportunity to benefit from constructive activities supervised by responsible adults.
"There is little doubt that after-school programs have the power to positively impact the lives of youth, and to enhance the communities they touch," the authors stress. "Beyond issues of safety are the rewards that students and their communities can reap as a result of quality after-school programs."
From homework help and tutoring to basketball drills and ballet practice, educators are discovering that quality after-school programs provide rich opportunities for students' continued academic and social development. Well-designed programs offer engaging activities where kids can reinforce classroom learning, hone new skills, participate in sports and hobbies, and build healthy relationships with peers and adults alike.
"There is a growing interest in supplementing the traditional school day with a variety of social and educational activities that enhance children's development," the authors note. "Quality after-school programs should be viewed as an opportunity to add to the knowledge and skills students are already cultivating, rather than just an obligation to occupy their time."
Research shows that successful school-based programs tend to share several characteristics. Quality programs:
- Involve the community
- Have the support of school staff and leadership
- Respond to the needs of students and their families
- Provide students with consistent, caring relationships with adults
- Give students a safe place to go and reinforce sound health and nutrition practices
Schwendiman and Fager acknowledge that building an after-school program that satisfies the complex needs of today's families can be a challenging undertaking for schools. While the authors point out that there is no one "right way" to design an after-school program, they describe the steps most commonly used in creating programs to guide readers through the process. The booklet also includes a checklist of indicators of quality in six critical areas: safety, health and nutrition, organization, staff, space, and activities.
Profiles of seven Northwest programs are included to highlight the range of after-school possibilities. Each of these programs represents a different design and geographic area, but they all share a commitment to creating safe environments conducive to learning and fun for all students.
This publication is out of print, but is available on line as HTML or PDF files.
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