February 21, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
NEW BOOKS
Quality Time After School: What Instructors Can Do to Enhance Learning, by Jean Grossman, Margo Campbell, and Becca Raley, studies five school-based community centers in Philadelphia that offer after-school academic, cultural, and recreational activities for youths. The report seeks “to detail key activity characteristics linked to youth engagement and learning and to provide instructors with a road map for how to create engaging learning environments in after-school programs.” The quality and strength of the staff members were very important, the study found; children were most interested and involved in activities characterized by good management and adults’ respect and positive support for the children. Survey data, snippets of interviews with staff members and youths, and suggestions for improving after-school programs are included in the report.
Publisher: Public/Private Ventures, 2000 Market Street, Suite 600, Philadelphia, Pa. 19103; (215) 557-4400; fax (215) 557-4469; http://www.ppv.org; 64 pages; $7.50, or available free for download on the organization’s Web site.
