Addressing Loss of Learning Over the Summer

Dr. Ruth Peters, a contributor to MSNBC, talks about the best ways for parents to prevent the loss of learning for their children over the summer months. Research indicates that students can lose up to two months of knowledge over the summer and that loss is even greater for low-income students. Click here for the article and video about this important topic.

Harvard Family Research Project Publishes New Issue Brief

A new issue brief from the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) highlights ten years of research demonstrating the value of afterschool programs, and poses a series of forward-looking questions for program providers.

"After School Programs in the 21st Century: Their Potential and What It Takes to Achieve It," by Priscilla M.D. Little, Christopher Wimer and Heather B. Weiss is the tenth in HFRP's series of issue briefs covering a variety of topics related to afterschool research and evaluations. It highlights key research on afterschool programs' impact on academic success; social and emotional development; drug, alcohol and sex prevention; and health and wellness.

The brief identifies key building blocks for program success, including quality programming, sustained participation, partnerships with schools and community organizations, family participation and more. It concludes by framing a series of questions for the afterschool community. Among them: how to ensure that effective afterschool practices are broadly implemented, and how programs can work with schools and community partners to "ensure a complementary array of learning and developmental supports."

The brief is part of HFRP's "Issues and Opportunities in Out-of-School Time Evaluation" series.

Reprinted from the Afterschool Alliance.

Coalition for Community Schools Holds its National Forum on April 30 - May 2

The Coalition for Community Schools will host its National Forum 2008 in Portland, Oregon. The theme is "Community Schools for All." Participants will learn to mobilize local leadership as champions for community schools system-wide; increase their capacity to advocate with national, state and local policy makers; plan and organize at the school and community levels; utilize research data and information; apply best practices; and more. For information, visit the Community Schools website.

Listing courtesy of the Afterschool Alliance.

The Center for Summer Learning Holds Their National Conference on April 17-18

The Center for Summer Learning will host its National Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico from April 17-18. Attendees will hear about the latest research, discuss effective program management strategies, learn to influence public policy, advocate for high-quality summer learning programs, network with like-minded colleagues, and more. For information, visit the Center for Summer Learning.

Listing courtesy of the Afterschool Alliance.

Afterschool and Family Involvement

Last month, the Afterschool Alliance issued a new Issue Brief, Afterschool: Supporting Family Involvement in Schools that talks about the natural link afterschool programs provides to parents. Research indicates that parental involvement makes a real difference in how their children perform in school. Check it out!

New England 21st CCLC Conference Focuses on Leadership

The third annual New England 21st CCLC conference was held in Cambridge last week from March 25 to March 26. Attended by over 300 people, the conference focused on leadership and sustainability - a popular theme in Massachusetts for the past year or so.
Conference attendees were treated to a range of interactive workshops and lectures including learning more about our individual leadership styles using the Gregroc methods.

Congratulations to all the conference organizers for a job well done!

Playground games boost self control

Leading research by Dr. Adele Diamond, reveals that playground games helps children gain skills such as "executive control" which helps them to think twice before they make a decision. Executive control also helps young people make conscious and deliberate choices and improve working memory. Working memory is what is needed when solving math problems for example. "You need these kinds of skills in all facets of your life," said Adele Diamond, co-author of the study that appeared last November in the journal Science. This research shows that executive control are predictors of future success in school and IQ tests. Researchers claim that these kinds of skills can be taught like academic skills and may be a tool to help teachers work with children who may be considered hyperactive.