Review of Out-of-School Time Program Quasi-Experimental and Experimental Evaluation Results

Excerpts from the evaluation follow (footnote numbers omitted):

"This Snapshot provides an overview of what the quasi-experimental and experimental evaluations in the [HFRP's Out-of-School Time Program Evaluation] [D]atabase 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 OST evaluation reviews and related evaluation information.

The past five years have witnessed overwhelming public support for the funding of out-of-school time (OST) programs. This support has been fueled by public concern that young people need safe places in the out-of-school hours - places that provide supervision by caring adults and productive activities that support school success as well as broader development...

This brief provides an overview of the 27 evaluations in the HFRP Out-of-School Time Program Evaluation Database that used experimental [random assignment of individuals to either a treatment or control group] and quasi-experimental [nonrandom selection of individuals to treatment and comparison groups or conditions, as well as the use of controls] research designs to make statements about program outcomes...The set of evaluations reviewed for this Snapshot represents a range of programs from small single-site programs to city- and statewide programs operating multiple sites in multiple locations to national programs...

Results from the 25 evaluations that assessed academic outcomes in this sample indicate that participation in OST programs is linked to:

• Better attitudes toward school and higher educational aspirations
• Better performance in school, as measured by achievement test scores and grades
• Higher school attendance (as measured by attendance and tardiness)
• Less disciplinary action (e.g., suspension)

...[R]esults from the 12 evaluations that assessed prevention outcomes in this sample indicate that participation in OST programs is linked to:

• Avoidance of drug and alcohol use
• Decreases in delinquency and violent behaviors
• Increased knowledge of safe sex and avoidance of sexual activity and pregnancy
• Increased skills for coping with peer pressure

...Results from the set of 15 evaluations that have assessed positive youth development results indicate that OST program participation is linked to:

• Decreased behavioral problems
• Improved social and communication skills and/or relationships with others (peers, parents, and/or teachers)
• Increased community involvement and broadened world view
• Increased self-confidence and self-esteem

...A growing number of OST evaluations have included research questions that help them assess the important link between duration and intensity of participation and participant outcomes. Nine of the studies in this review examined their outcomes findings in light of program participation rates and eight found statistically significant positive relationships between time spent in the program and academic and positive youth development outcomes.

...While the 21st Century Community Learning Centers evaluation did not find a relationship between frequency of participation and academic achievement, the other seven studies that analyzed outcomes in relation to participation reported that greater frequency of participation was associated with better school attendance rates, lower rates of course failure, and higher measures of academic achievement."

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