The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.
Select a category below to narrow the list of publications about out-of-school time. Click on a column heading to sort, and then select a title to view the publication. If you are looking for a specific document, topic, or author, visit our Publications & Resources section to conduct an advanced search.
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Documenting Progress and Demonstrating Results: Evaluating Local Out-of-School Time Programs
A collaboration with the Finance Project, this brief provides practitioners of local out-of-school time programs with techniques, tools, and strategies for improving their program and tracking their effectiveness over time.
A Field is Born: Reflections on a Decade of Afterschool
Priscilla Little, an independent consultant working in afterschool research and evaluation, reflects on the transformation of afterschool from being merely a “safe haven” for kids whose parents are working to a core component of a holistic education. She also highlights six strategies for engaging families in afterschool programs.
Supporting Student Outcomes Through Expanded Learning Opportunities
This paper looks at the role of after school and summer learning programs in supporting student success. The paper explores how to bridge the divide between out-of-school time programs and schools by offering research-derived principles for effective expanded learning partnerships. It was commissioned by Learning Point Associates and the Collaborative for Building After-School Systems (CBASS) as part of a report on school reform and expanded learning.
A Review of Out-of-School Time Program Quasi-Experimental and Experimental Evaluation Results
This Snapshot provides an overview of what the quasi-experimental and experimental evaluations in the HFRP's OST Database reveal about the impact of out-of-school time programs on an array of academic, prevention, and youth development outcomes. It also includes a resource list of other out-of-school time evaluation reviews and related evaluation information.
Expanded Learning Opportunities — Pathways to Student Success
This paper highlights research on the promise of expanded learning approaches — including after-school, summer, extended day, and community networks—for education reform.
Expanded Learning Opportunities in New Jersey—Pathways to Student Success
This Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) policy brief, prepared for New Jersey After 3’s Expanded Learning Time Summit in September 2010, describes the potential benefits of participation in a range of well-implemented ELO programs and initiatives for students of all ages, including afterschool and summer programming, and underscores the benefits of strong partnerships for learning between schools and out‐of‐school learning supports. It concludes with a set of key policy factors to consider when adopting different ELO approaches.
Beyond School Hours VIII Annual Conference
Priscilla Little presented the workshop Learning What Works: An Evaluation Overview, providing an overview of what we know about after school evaluation. It examines how programs are collecting meaningful data for accountability and program improvement and what they are finding.
21st Century Community Learning Centers Summer Institute
This workshop, Redefining After School Programs to Support Student Achievement, provides an overview of current evaluation research, describes elements of effective after school programs, and discusses a theory of change approach to designing and implementing effective after school programs.
Plus Time New Hampshire 3-Day Training Institute
Participation in out-of-school time programs is a key ingredient to achieving positive outcomes for young people. Priscilla Little presented two workshops, which provided overviews of key participation challenges: collecting meaningful attendance data and attracting and sustaining youth participation in OST programs.
Performance Measures in Out-of-School Time Evaluation
This Snapshot outlines the academic, youth development, and prevention performance measures currently being used by out-of-school time programs to assess their progress, and the corresponding data sources for these measures.
Engaging Adolescents in Out-of-School Time Programs: Learning What Works
This article examines both the incentives and barriers that affect adolescents' participation in out-of-school time programs.
Evaluating Municipal Out-of-School Time Initiatives
To inform municipal leaders who are developing out-of-school time evaluations, HFRP scanned the city-level initiatives in its evaluation profiles database and prepared this short brief that describes the evaluation approaches, methods, and performance measures that some cities are using for evaluation.
Leave Them Wanting More!: Engaging Youth in Afterschool
Afterschool programs are a powerful influence in the lives of young people, but their benefits can only be realized if youth are engaged. This commentary explores the different dimensions of youth engagement in afterschool programs and offers promising practices for those seeking to promote and foster youth engagement.
Family Engagement in Anywhere, Anytime Learning
Explore the world of anywhere, anytime learning with us! Read how researchers and practitioners are helping to close the opportunity gap by creating innovative spaces, developing strategic collaborations to ensure children’s success, and engaging families and children as partners in meaningful learning experiences, both in and out of school.
Public Libraries: A Vital Space for Family Engagement
Harvard Family Research Project and the Public Library Association call for libraries to join together with schools and community organizations to establish a system of family engagement that extends throughout a child’s life, supports children and families, and prepares children for success.
Improve Family Involvement in After School Programs
Growing evidence tells us that parent involvement in after school programs can make a difference in children's lives, as well as benefit families, schools, and after school programs themselves. This article by Ellen Mayer and Holly M. Kreider draws from research conducted by HFRP in partnership with Build the Out-of-School Time Network and the United Way of Massachusetts Bay. It describes four strategies for engaging elementary school families in after school programs and provides examples of promising practices from family-focused programs serving ethnically diverse families. The article also offers implications for parents and parent leaders as they select and design after school programs.
After School for Cindy: Family, School, and Community Roles in Out-of-School Time Teaching Case
Second grade teacher Nikki believes that participation in a formal after school program would help her student Cindy academically at school. However, Cindy's single working mother Marla prefers to keep Cindy with her in the afternoons after her numerous struggles with securing quality affordable care in the community. What are the roles of family, school, and community in promoting children's learning and development in out-of-school time?
A Strong Start for Family Engagement in Massachusetts
Through its Race to the Top–Early Learning Challenge funds, Massachusetts has created strategic partnerships with museums and libraries, public television, family and community programs, community nonprofits, and public transportation to build a robust and growing statewide family engagement system.
The Transition to Afterschool: One City’s Approach to Connecting Young Children and Their Families to Learning and Enrichment Opportunities
What steps can programs take to help families successfully transition to school and afterschool? How can families make informed choices about afterschool opportunities? What information do families need in this process? This video demonstrates how Cambridge, Massachusetts, is addressing these and related questions to help connect families to afterschool learning and enrichment opportunities prior to school entry.
The Transition to Afterschool: One City’s Approach to Connecting Young Children and Their Families to Learning and Enrichment Opportunities—Part Two
How can you create a resource to help families of young children successfully transition to afterschool? What questions should be addressed? This video looks at one city’s approach to helping connect families and their young children to afterschool enrichment opportunities.
New Learning Opportunities Mean New Opportunities for Engagement
Today’s children and youth are increasingly exposed to new forms of learning beyond the classroom, especially in the form of out-of-school time programs and digital media. Developments in these areas have opened up new ways that families can become involved in their children’s education and development. In this FINE Newsletter Commentary, HFRP’s Heidi Rosenberg and M. Elena Lopez discuss the new roles for families in supporting student learning.
Joining Forces: Families and Out-of-School Programs as Partners in Supporting Children’s Learning and Development
Harvard Family Research Project’s Senior Research Analysts Heidi Rosenberg, Erin Harris, and Shani Wilkes explore how the relationship between families and afterschool is shifting from a focus on increasing afterschool program participation toward a focus on parents’ supporting children’s learning and development in afterschool settings.
Strategy Guide: Collecting and Using Information to Strengthen Citywide Out-of-School Time Systems
Cities around the country are building systems that seek to make the most of public and private resources to provide widespread, high-quality, out-of-school time (OST) opportunities. Participation in OST programs not only benefits young people, but also the cities in which they live—with the potential to help reduce crime and create a more skilled workforce. This guide by the National League of Cities and HFRP provides municipal leaders and their key partners with strategies for collecting and using information to strengthen citywide OST systems.
What About the Parents?
Katie Salen Tekinbaş outlines strategies and activities that New York City public school Quest to Learn has implemented to ensure that families are engaged in the digital learning life of students.
A Day in the Life: Family Engagement in Citizen Schools
Emily Schneider-Krzys, the Deputy Program Director of Citizen Schools in Texas, explains how the Citizen Schools program’s focus on creating networks, building intentional relationships, and establishing consistent communication helps to engage families and support student learning.