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.
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Life on the Ground: Balancing Youth Ownership With Adult Input
Kathrin Walker and Reed Larson from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign explore the dilemmas adult leaders in youth programs face and how they address them to improve program quality.
Bringing Yourself to Work: Assessing the Impact of Social-Emotional Learning for After School Staff
Michelle Seligson describes a professional development initiative for after school practitioners.
Building Quality in Out-of-School Time in the United Kingdom
Ian Fordham, Pam Boyd, and Tony Apicella of ContinYou, a leading youth development organization in the United Kingdom, describe their efforts to improve quality in OST programming nationwide.
Assessing the How of Outcomes in Out-of-School Time: Learning From MARS
John Zuman and Beth Miller present an overview of the Massachusetts Afterschool Research Study, a statewide investigation into how after school programs constitute quality contexts for youth.
Promoting Quality Out-of-School Time Programs Through Professional Development
Suzanne Bouffard from HFRP discusses how staff development initiatives and evaluations contribute to quality youth programming.
New & Noteworthy
An annotated list of organizations and initiatives related to the issue's theme of Evaluating Out-of-School Time Program Quality.
Youth Civic Engagement: Emerging Theory and Practice
Margaret Post from HFRP examines the emerging practice of youth civic engagement and describes current efforts to promote quality in this area.
New & Noteworthy: Expanded Web Only Version
This web only version of the New & Noteworthy section features an expanded annotated list of organizations and initiatives related to the issue's theme of Evaluating Out-of-School Time Program Quality.
Out-of-School Time Opportunities for Immigrant Youth
Erin Harris from HFRP discusses the importance of out-of-school time programs for immigrant youth.
Designing Quality Assessment Tools in Early Childhood Education and Youth Development
Ted Jurkiewicz and Charles Hohmann from the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation describe the design of High/Scope's new Youth Program Quality Assessment tool.
Learning From Organizations That Learn
Four experts in the out-of-school time field discuss their experiences using evaluation for program improvement.
A Recipe for Quality Out-of-School Time Programs
Priscilla Little from HFRP asks eight after school experts to identity the single ingredient essential to ensuring high quality OST programs.
Extracting Evaluation Lessons From Four Recent Out-of-School Time Program Evaluations
Thomas J. Kane from the University of California, Los Angeles, distills lessons for future research from his review of four recent after school program evaluations.
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.
Free. Available online only.
New & Noteworthy
A list of organizations and initiatives related to the issue's theme of Reflecting on the Past and Future of Evaluation.
A Review of Activity Implementation in Out-of-School Time Programs
This Snapshot examines the range and scope of activities being implemented in current out-of-school time programs to set a context for understanding the links between program activities and positive outcomes for youth.
Free. 4 Pages.
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.
Hard copy out of stock. Available online only.
Why, When, and How to Use Evaluation: Experts Speak Out
This brief offers expert commentary on the implications of the first-year report of the national evaluation of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program for future evaluation and research. It includes a methodological critique of that study, written by Deborah Vandell.
Free. 8 Pages.
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.
New & Noteworthy
This section features an annotated list of resources related to the issue's theme of Evaluating Out-of-School Time.
The Out-of-School-Time Program Evaluation Database
Erin Harris of HFRP outlines what information the HFRP Out-of-School Time Evaluation Database includes, how it is organized, and its practical applications.
From the Director's Desk
An introduction to the issue on Evaluating Out-of-School Time by HFRP's Founder & Director, Heather B. Weiss, Ed.D.
Does Youth Participation in Out-of-School Time Activities Make a Difference?
Sandra Simpkins of HFRP integrates findings from academic research and program evaluation to provide a comprehensive look at the relationship between participation in out-of-school time (OST) activities and positive youth outcomes, and points to new directions for OST research and evaluation.
Evaluating Out-of-School Time
This is the third issue of The Evaluation Exchange (Harvard Family Research Project's quarterly evaluation periodical) devoted to exploring the challenges and solutions associated with evaluating out-of-school (OST) programs. This issue includes articles on what we know from existing research and evaluation about the results that are possible from OST programming, expert commentary on what the future OST research and evaluation agenda should look like, and information about hands-on research and evaluation tools and resources. It is also includes a special report with expert commentary on the implications of the first year findings in Mathematica's evaluation of the national 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. To read the previous issues on out-of-school time, go to our issue archive.
Free. 24 Pages.
How can research and evaluation improve practice regarding access and equity in out-of-school time programs?
Five experts in the field of youth development and OST programming address the question of how research and evaluation can improve practice regarding access and equity in out-of-school time programs.