The benefits of afterschool activity participation for youth development are well-documented. An interesting question dominating this field is whether there is a threshold at which point participating in too many activities (breadth) and spending too much time in those activities (intensity) is negatively associated with desirable outcomes. Using…

While students tend to enjoy their science learning at a young age, as they mature, they tend to distance themselves from science, becoming less motivated to engage with science and holding negative attitudes towards science. In parallel, a career choice in science often begins to develop during early adolescence. To understand how the environment…

Over the last four years, the Afterschool Alliance and MetLife Foundation have worked together to identify exemplary, and often lesser-known afterschool programs across the nation. For the past two years, efforts have focused on finding innovative afterschool programs serving middle school students. This focus was developed to address the need for…

The Afterschool Alliance, in partnership with MetLife Foundation, is proud to present the third in a series of four issue briefs examining critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. This brief focuses on service-learning opportunities for middle schoolers. Pairing service…

The Afterschool Alliance, in partnership with MetLife Foundation, is proud to present the second in its latest series of four issue briefs examining critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. This brief explores afterschool and arts enrichment. The arts have the remarkable…

Colleges of education must instantiate their candidates' knowledge, skills, and dispositions for accreditation. Professors often have candidates reflect on field experience as a way to enhance their learning. This study examines reflections of 43 candidates over a 2-year period. Candidates engaged in an after-school enrichment program as…

Out-of-school time (OST) programs focused on older youth--specifically, youth in middle and high school--can help participants successfully navigate their adolescence and learn new skills well into their teens. OST programs can also help prepare older youth for a variety of new roles that they will assume as they enter college and the workforce.…

Afterschool programs across the country provide critically needed services to the nation's children and families; however, many afterschool providers find it difficult to serve youth once they enter middle school. Middle school youth have a unique set of social, emotional and academic needs, and afterschool successfully weaves these together,…

Adolescence is a period of rapid developmental changes. Only in the early years of childhood do individuals experience such a brisk pace of change. However, all too often, out-of-school time (OST) programs do not recognize how quickly the needs and interests of adolescents shift along with their developmental changes. Program staff know--and…

This article introduces the clover model, a research-based developmental model of resilience and psychopathology related to the prevention of aggressive behavior and the promotion of resiliency in adolescents. It describes how social cognitions and emotions function differently at different periods of adolescent development and influence problem…

Early adolescence is a time of transition, change, and growth. At no other time after gestation and early infancy are the human body and mind undergoing such rapid developmental changes. The bodies of young adolescents are physically and sexually maturing. Cognitive changes expand thinking abilities; social and emotional changes move adolescents…

The after-school leadership program described in this article is designed to provide positive growth experiences to middle school youngsters. Participants in this program include students who are recommended by school staff because they are at or below the academic average of the school. These kids are frequently ignored because they neither excel…

The authors introduce the RALLY (Responsive Advocacy for Life and Learning in Youth) approach. RALLY is a school- and afterschool-based approach addressing academic success, youth development, and mental health for youth. Based on developmental and relational principles, RALLY's main goals are to promote students' resiliency, development, and…

Background/Context: Studies carried out over the last two decades have established structured after-school programs as significant contexts for adolescent development. Recent large-scale evaluations of after-school initiatives have yielded mixed results, finding some impact on adolescents' attitudes toward school but limited impact on their…

Opportunities for children and youth to engage in activities during out-of-school hours come in various shapes, sizes and flavors. At one end of the spectrum are highly structured, five-day-a-week, school-based programs focused broadly on encouraging and supporting academic and social development. At the other end are assorted activities and…