January 1, 2016
The guidebook describes SEL standards and organizational and curriculum features for a set of eight exemplary SEL programs.
Preparing Youth to Thrive: Promising Practices for Social Emotional Learning
Framing an Evidence-Based Decision About 21st CCLC
March 27, 2015
In this policy commentary, we do some reasoning about how 21st CCLC produces value and discuss the limitations in one particular way of seeing that value – the intent-to-treat impact evaluation design.
Afterschool Quality
December 23, 2014
This research article discusses efforts to define and improve the quality of afterschool services, highlighting areas of agreement and identifying leading-edge issues. We conclude that the afterschool field is especially well positioned to deliver high-quality services and demonstrate effectiveness at scale because a strong foundation has been built for continuous improvement of service quality.
Moving the Needle on “Moving the Needle”
December 1, 2013
This paper introduces the nomenclature of performance-based accountability systems (PBAS) to the expanded learning field, provides a policy case study for a countywide system in southern Florida and uses data from that system to explore the issue of quality thresholds. We present an expanded design standard to guide development and improvement of PBAS policies and further develop a theory of lower-stakes accountability to guide effective use of incentives of various types. Findings suggest that (1) the PBAS framework defines critical concepts and improves our ability to describe existing quality improvement systems, (2) the Youth Program Quality Assessment (Youth PQA) can be used to produce a program rating of sufficient reliability for use in a PBAS, and (3) that the Palm Beach County PBAS design is an exemplar for expanded learning policies.
Measuring Youth Skills in Expanded Learning Systems: Case Study for Reliability and Validity of YDEKC Skill Measures and Technical Guidance for Local Evaluators
January 1, 2013
This paper uses pattern-centered methods to increase the usefulness of information available from survey-based skill measures, with a focus on using survey-based skills measures to detect skill change over time.
Building Citywide Systems for Quality: A Guide and Case Studies for Afterschool Leaders
October 1, 2012
This guide offers case studies that explain how cities and intermediaries can work with afterschool providers across a neighborhood, city, or region to build quality into the programs that are part of an afterschool system.
The STEM supplement to the Youth Program Quality Assessment
January 1, 2012
This report describes the process of development of the STEM supplement to the Youth Program Quality Assessment and preliminary reliability and validity evidence based on data collected during The Afterzone Summer Scholars program sponsored by the Providence After School Alliance (PASA).
Continuous Quality Improvement in Afterschool Settings: Impact Findings from the Youth Program Quality Intervention Study
January 1, 2012
The David P. Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality conducted a three year intervention study to examine the Youth Program Quality Intervention (YPQI). The YPQI is a data-driven continuous improvement model for school and community-based sites serving youth during afterschool hours.
Quality at the Point of Service: Profiles of Practice in After-School Settings
April 1, 2010
This paper uses pattern centered methods to identify three different quality profiles (high, medium, and low) that characterize staff instruction in out-of-school time programs.
Linking after-school instructional practices to youth engagement: A pattern-centered approach
January 1, 2010
This paper uses pattern centered methods to describe the association between the quality of instruction available and youth’s level of mental engagement with that instruction.