|
|
|
Philadelphia Beacons
Beacon Centers are now operating in 18 underutilized public schools in low-income areas throughout Philadelphia. Organizers seek to establish the centers as sources of opportunity, service and safety for children and their families. P/PV's three-year evaluation explored program quality and effectiveness and examined practices that engage students. The Philadelphia Beacons evaluation builds on work P/PV has done with the San Francisco Beacon Initiative, a public-private partnership formed to create comprehensive after-school programs in eight San Francisco schools, and the Extended-Service Schools Initiative, a 17-city after-school initiative supported by the Wallace Readers' Digest Funds.
|
|
|
PUBLICATIONS
|
Quality Time After School In Brief
by Jean Grossman, Margo Campbell and Becca Raley
May 2007,
4 pages
This issue of P/PV In Brief focuses on key findings—and their implications for policymakers and funders—from Quality Time After School: What Instructors Can Do to Enhance Learning. Drawing on extensive qualitative and quantitative data collected from five Philadelphia-based Beacon Centers, our study identifies characteristics of after-school activities that are linked to youth engagement and learning across a rich diversity of out-of-school-time activity areas. The brief explores the importance of good group management and positive adult support of learning, providing program directors and funders with guidance for improving program quality and fostering engagement and learning in after-school programs.
Hard Copy Price: $1.00
order online
free download
|
|
Quality Time After School: What Instructors Can Do to Enhance Learning
by Jean Grossman, Margo Campbell and Becca Raley
April 2007,
64 pages
Improving the quality of out-of-school time activities and creating effective learning environments is of keen interest to practitioners, funders and policymakers. Funded by The William Penn Foundation, Quality Time After School identifies characteristics of after-school activities that are linked to youth engagement and learning across a rich diversity of out-of-school-time activity areas.
Drawing from surveys and interviews with more than 400 participants and instructors from five Philadelphia-based Beacon Centers, the report's findings highlight the importance of two features of high-quality activities: good group management and positive adult support of learning. Building on analyses of over 50 detailed activity observations, as well as key lessons from past research, the report also suggests a road map for program operators and policymakers to create engaging learning environments in after-school programs.
Hard Copy Price: $5.00
order online
free download
|
|
Quality Time After School Executive Summary
by Jean Grossman, Margo Campbell and Becca Raley
April 2007,
4 pages
This executive summary provides an overview of key findings from Quality Time After School: What Instructors Can Do to Enhance Learning. The executive summary focuses on the importance of two features of high-quality activities: good group management and positive adult support of learning. Drawing from surveys and interviews with more than 400 participants and instructors from five Philadelphia-based Beacon Centers, this study will begin to help program managers and funders make headway in identifying key features of high-quality after-school programs.
free download
|
|
Beacons In Brief
by Susan Blank and Chelsea Farley
June 2004,
4 pages
This second issue in P/PV's In Brief series focuses on the San Francisco Beacon Initiative and P/PV's recently released evaluation results. The Beacon Initiative established after-school programs in eight public schools in low-income San Francisco neighborhoods. P/PV's 36-month evaluation examined key developmental and academic outcomes. Beacons In Brief summarizes our findings and discusses their implications in the context of larger questions about the after-school field. The full report, After-School Pursuits: An Examination of Outcomes in the San Francisco Beacon Initiative, is also available.
Hard Copy Price: $1.00
order online
free download
|
|
After-School Pursuits: An Examination of Outcomes in the San Francisco Beacon Initiative
by Karen E. Walker and Amy J.A. Arbreton
March 2004,
118 pages
The San Francisco Beacon Initiative (SFBI) has been in effect in the San Francisco Unified School District since 1996. A collaboration of public and private funders, SFBI operates comprehensive after-school programs in six middle schools, one elementary school and one high school. P/PV's evaluation found that SFBI programs consisted of high-quality after-school activities, provided young people with important developmental experiences (such as adult support) and prevented declines in school effort (typical among middle school youth). Although the initiative did not explicitly set out to improve young people's academic outcomes, these were also examined. Despite the high quality of the centers' developmental programs, participants showed no academic gains, and the authors conclude that positive developmental experiences are not sufficient for ensuring academic success among youth who are already struggling in school.
Hard Copy Price: $5.00
order online
free download
|
|
Working Together to Build Beacon Centers in San Francisco: Evaluation Findings from 1998-2000
by Karen E. Walker and Amy J. A. Arbreton
October 2001,
91 pages
Since 1996, private and public funders in San Francisco have supported a city-wide Beacons Initiative. Eight Beacon Centers, located in public schools, serve 7500 youth and adults each year, providing a rich array of developmental activities in the non-school hours. This report looks at how the centers were created; it describes the centers operation; and investigates the role of the initiative's "theory of change" in organizing and guiding the effort.
Hard Copy Price: $5.00
free download
|
|
|
|
Stay Informed
Receive email updates about P/PV's reports, initiatives and events.
Join us on Facebook, or watch P/PV videos on YouTube.
Make a Donation
Support P/PV's work with your tax-free donation.
Join Our Team
View P/PV's job and internship opportunities.
|
