Expanding Minds and Opportunities: Leveraging the Power of Afterschool and Summer Learning for Student Success presents an impressive and significant body of work that comprises almost 70 reports, research studies, essays, articles, and commentaries by more than 100 authors representing a range of researchers, educators, policy makers, and professionals in the field, as well as thought leaders and opinion influencers. Collectively, these writings boldly state that there is now a solid base of research and best practices clearly showing that quality afterschool and summer learning programs-including 21st Century Community Learning Centers-make a positive difference for students, families, schools, and communities.

After-school programs are becoming an important developmental support for low and moderate-income children. This book describes the historical development, current status, and critical issues facing these programs. Divided into historical eras for easy reference, the text examines: - The evolution of after-school programs and their role in the lives of children, providing a framework for reflecting on broader, contemporary issues such as the effects of poverty on children in the United States.- The rationales for and objectives of these programs and how both were shaped by prevailing societal ideas about children.- Patterns of sponsorship and staffing, describing daily routines and exploring the nature of children's experiences in different kinds of programs.- The relationship between after-school programs and schools, analyzing how these programs have responded to the dilemma of balancing children's needs for guidance and supervision with their equally important need for spontaneity and self-expression.- Current directions and expectations for the future of after-school programs.

Buffalo State College Master's project in Elementary Education and Reading, 2004.

This report summarizes the presentations and discussion at a workshop entitled Opportunities to Promote Child and Adolescent Development During the After-School Hours, convened on October 21, 1999. The workshop was organized by the Board on Children, Youth, and Families and its Forum on Adolescence of the National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine, with funding from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. This workshop brought together policy makers, researchers, and practitioners to examine research on the developmental needs of children and adolescentsâ€"ages 5 to 14 yearsâ€"and the types of after-school programs designed to promote the health and development of these young people. Intended to provide a forum for discussion among the various stakeholders, the workshop did not generate conclusions about the types of programs that are most effective, nor did it generate specific recommendations about after-school programs or promote a particular approach. The workshop coincided with release of the Packard Foundation's fall 1999 issue of The Future of Children, entitled "When School Is Out." Focusing on after-school programs, the journal provided some context for the workshop, providing a backdrop for discussing the importance of after-school programs, the types of programs that exist across the country, and the policy climate that surrounds after-school programs. This report summarizes the workshop.

The authors survey the current afterschool landscape and bring to light important issues and practices within the field, explore the challenges and opportunities facing afterschool education programs, and point to future directions for these burgeoning educational ventures. Afterschool education has grown in recent years into a vast and diverse enterprise. In the United States, young people spend almost a third of their organized time (including school hours) in afterschool and summer programs. Yet there is little clear and conclusive research on afterschool programs—research that would help guide the practice of existing afterschool programs and establish guidelines for the creation of new programs. An indispensable guide for practitioners, administrators, policy makers, and parents, Afterschool Education will serve as the cornerstone for all future accounts of and proposals for this crucial educational field.