scholarly journals Cacophony and Change in Youth After School Activities: Findings from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Theokas ◽  
Jacqueline V. Lerner ◽  
Erin Phelps ◽  
Richard M. Lerner
Keyword(s):  
Youth Development ◽  
Positive Youth Development ◽  
Sixth Grade ◽  
After School ◽  
Community Collaboration ◽  
School Activities ◽  
After School Program ◽  
After School Activities ◽  
Using Data

This paper describes the configuration and changes in young adolescents’ participation in structured after school activities. Using data from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development the 983 youth studied in both the first and the second waves of this research (fifth and sixth grade, respectively) were found to engage in structured after school activities at high levels. Fewer than 12% did not participate in any activities. Participation in multiple activities was the norm for these youth and the configuration of activities changed between grades. The breadth of participation in structured after school activities suggests, first, that it would be ideal to have broad community collaboration in regard to youth programming to ensure that youth receive excellent programming, no matter where they turn; and, second, that youth development researchers and practitioners need to consider new approaches to conceptualizing and evaluating the possible role of any one after-school program in promoting exemplary development.

Designing Culturally Responsive Organized After-School Activities

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra D. Simpkins ◽  
Nathaniel R. Riggs ◽  
Bic Ngo ◽  
Andrea Vest Ettekal ◽  
Dina Okamoto
Keyword(s):  
Youth Development ◽  
Culturally Responsive ◽  
Racial Diversity ◽  
School Funding ◽  
The United States ◽  
After School ◽  
Organized Activities ◽  
Developmental Needs ◽  
School Activities ◽  
After School Activities

Organized after-school activities promote positive youth development across a range of outcomes. To be most effective, organized activities need to meet high-quality standards. The eight features of quality developed by the National Research Council’s Committee on Community-Level Programs for Youth have helped guide the field in this regard. However, these standards have largely been defined in terms of universal developmental needs, and do not adequately speak to the growing ethnic and racial diversity within the United States, which is further complicated by issues of power and social class differences. Given U.S. population shifts and after-school funding priorities, the time has come to consider new ways to provide organized after-school activities that are responsive to youth’s culture and everyday lives. The goal of this article is to explore how we can help ensure that after-school activities are culturally responsive and address the specific needs of the youth who participate in these activities. Based on theory and empirical evidence, we provide proposed practices of cultural responsiveness for each of the eight features of quality for program structure and staff. The article concludes with future directions for research and strategies to implement culturally responsive practices and harness resources.

scholarly journals Sibling Behaviors and Mexican-Origin Adolescents’ After-School Activities

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chara D. Price ◽  
Sandra D. Simpkins ◽  
Cecilia Menjívar
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
After School ◽  
Mexican Origin ◽  
School Activities ◽  
Youth Population ◽  
After School Activities ◽  
Role Of Parents

Families are theorized to influence adolescents’ participation in skill-based after-school activities, but research has focused on the role of parents while neglecting the role of siblings. Siblings might be especially critical for Mexican-origin youth, the fastest growing youth population in the United States, due to a high value of family as well as having a larger number of and spending more time with siblings compared with other groups. This mixed-method study of 34 Mexican-origin seventh-grade adolescents provides preliminary evidence for how siblings might influence adolescents’ skill-based organized and informal after-school activities. Qualitative findings suggest that siblings influenced adolescents’ activities through eight unique behaviors (i.e., support, provider of information, role modeling, comparison, negativity, babysitting, transportation, and activity co-participation). Follow-up quantitative analysis suggested some sibling behaviors were more likely to be mentioned based on sibling characteristics, individual characteristics, and neighborhoods. The study highlights new theory, emerging future directions, and ways to promote positive after-school activities via siblings.

Youth Learning in Afterschool Programs

2016 ◽  
pp. 376-401
Author(s):  
Al Lauzon ◽  
Sarah Christie ◽  
Heather Cross ◽  
Bushra Khan ◽  
Bakhtawar Khan
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Positive Youth Development ◽  
Technical Skills ◽  
Rural Youth ◽  
Technical Skill ◽  
After School ◽  
Afterschool Programs ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
After School Program

This chapter reports on the learning outcomes of an after-school program (ASP) known as Fusion Youth and Technology Centre (Fusion) situated in Ingersoll, Ontario. The chapter begins by making the case that ASPs are part of the lifelong learning infrastructure and they should be given more consideration by researchers and policy-makers. This is followed by examining the changes in education and its implications for youth followed by a discussion of ASPs and positive youth development. A description of Fusion is presented and then the findings of four studies conducted at Fusion are reviewed. The discussion focuses on learning outcomes and reports back in terms of external and internal assets necessary for positive youth development to occur and their relationship to technical skill development. A conclusion is then drawn that ASPs with a focus on technology programs can have significant learning outcomes in terms of capacities and technical skills developed. Furthermore, it is argued that the benefts are often derived by rural youth who are not successful educationally, come from lower socio-economic homes, and are the youth who are most likely to be at-risk.

Marital Hostility and Early Adolescents’ Adjustment: The Role of Cooperative Marital Conflict

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Zhou ◽  
Cheryl Buehler
Keyword(s):  
Behavior Problems ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Marital Conflict ◽  
Internalizing Problems ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Sixth Grade ◽  
Youth Adjustment ◽  
Adjustment Difficulties ◽  
Youth Behavior

Although the assertion that marital hostility relates to higher levels of youth adjustment difficulties has been well established, few studies have examined cooperative marital conflict in relation to youth behavior problems. This study examined the main and moderating effects of cooperative marital conflict on youth behavior problems in a sample of 416 two-parent families. Gender differences also were examined. Youth were in the sixth grade (51% females), and ranged in age from 11 to 14 ([Formula: see text] = 11.86, SD = .69). Cooperative marital conflict was associated with lower levels of youth internalizing problems. Cooperative marital conflict was related to daughters’ but not sons’ lower levels of externalizing problems. Cooperative marital conflict also served as a protective factor in the association between marital hostility and youth internalizing problems. These findings highlight the importance of examining cooperative marital conflict above and beyond marital hostility to better understand youth development during early adolescence.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document