About this Web site

How to Use This Site

Stages of Development

BASICS Toolkit

 

 Session 2: Academic Supports

 

 

Session 2: Academic Supports What is it? Tools Organized by Purpose Framing and Overview of the Academic Supports Topic Icebreaker Activity Developmental Domains: Providing a Risk and Opportunities Framework Identifying Risks and Opportunities for Youth Examing Alignment between School Day and Afterschool practices Best Practices in After School The California Content Standards and Academic Enrichment Applying Domains, Content Standards and Youth Development in Afterschool Planning: Next Steps by School Team Additional Resources: Why is it important? Why this module now? What did we do? Reflections and Lessons Learned Printable Version of the Contents of this page:  090323_S2_BASICS_toolkit_LR.pdf

 

 

What is it?

This session focused on the three common forms of after-school academic support systems available in community schools and the need for understanding how the integration of these distinct support systems coordinates with the school’s core instructional program. The three forms are:

 

 

• Academic Remediation: This approach is used when students encounter difficulty mastering academic content and skills during their regular school day. Remedial approaches include one-on-one and small group tutoring, review classes, and computer-assisted instruction.

 

• Academic Support: As the term implies, this category of programming is designed to support students' school success through such efforts as homework assistance and "test sophistication" training sessions. 

• Academic Enrichment: Enrichment may or may not be directly linked to what children are learning during the regular school day. What makes this kind of programming academic in its focus is that it provides young people with an opportunity to practice their academic skills - such as reading, writing, speaking, mathematical calculation, and scientific inquiry.

 

 

Session 2’s primary objectives were:

1.      Participants will learn and apply child developmental domains, youth development, content standards, and effective after-school practice to better link school-day and after-school practices.

2.      Participants will identify how after-school and school-day activities can be integrated in order to achieve maximum learning and development results.

 

Tools Organized by Purpose

 

Time	Pupose	Descriptions	Tools	Notes on Tools
30 min	Arrival/Breakfast/Welcome
25 min	Framing and Overview of the Academic Supports Topic	Mini-lecture: Effective programming for academic success through out of school time	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt
10 min	Icebreaker Activity	Problem solving in groups: Math game	S2 Tool - Icebreaker Activity 24-CAS.doc
20 min	Developmental Domains: Providing a Risk and Opportunities Framework	Mini-lecture: Youth Development with a focus on ages 11-14 and how to apply theory to program development	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt (continued from above)	Chart on Adolescent Development across physical, emotional, social, cognative, and moral domains
45 min	Identifying Risks and Opportunities for Youth	Activity: Groups brainstorm risks and opportunities for age groups 5-7 or 8-10	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt (continued from above)	Presentation contains sample opportunities
10 MINUTE BREAK
60 min	Examing Alignment between School Day and Afterschool practices	Mini-presentation on school linkages practices and activity to identify gaps in services around developmental areas	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt (continued from above) S2_Tool_Summary_of_Dev_Needs_of_Children-CAS.doc	Activity: 30 min in small group and 15 min share out
45 MINUTE BREAK FOR LUNCH AND NETWORKING
35 min	Best Practices in After School	How do we balance the academic and non academic practices in afterschool? What pitfalls can we avoid? Mini-lecture followed by application by each site team	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt (continued from above)
50 min	The California Content Standards and Academic Enrichment	What is stadard learning that is expected of children? How can the California academic standards help to guide and inform aftershool practice? Each site then had the opportunity to practice applying strategy for their own programs	S2 Presentation - Maximizing the After-School Hours-CAS & CCCSP.ppt (continued from above)
10 MINUTE BREAK
35 min	Applying Domains, Content Standards and Youth Development in Afterschool	How do you build academic enrichment into programs? Each site then had the opportunity to practice applying strategy for their own programs
30 min	Planning: Next Steps by School Team		S2 Tool - Next Steps Worksheet-JGC.do
45 min	Additional Resouces, Group Reflections, Evaluation, Closing

 

Additional Resources:

 

 

 Agenda and Training Design:

S2 Agenda.doc 

S2_040319_Training_Design.doc 

 

Tools:

After School Curricula Resources-CAS[1].doc

 CAS curricula part 2.doc 

S2 Tool - After School Learning Style Strategies.doc

S2 Tool -Linking Developmental Domains to School and After.doc -CAS

S2 Tool - Epstein Framework Adapted for After School.doc 

S2 Tool - Five Types of Bridging Programs-CAS.doc    

S2 Tool - Linking Standards and Developmental Domains Worksheet-CAS.doc

S2 Tool - Out of School Time-CAS.doc   

S2 Tool - Program Planning-CAS.doc  

S2 Tool - Shared Inquiry Approach-CAS.doc 

S2 Tool - Types of After School Curricula Approaches-CAS.doc 

S2 Tool - What Do We Know About Adolescents-CAS.doc  

S2 Tool - What Do We Know About Children-CAS.doc  

S2 Tool - Linking Developmental Domains worksheet.doc

 

Samples:

 

afterschool fact sheet 11-05.doc  

 

Evaluation Summary:

S2 Evaluation Summary.doc

 

 

 

 

Why is it important?

·         Since publications like A Matter of Time and A Nation at Risk[1] were released, more attention has focused on what youth do during their out-of-school time.

·         Ongoing research (e.g. Beyond School Time) has added to our knowledge about how youth participate in constructive learning activities during non-school hours. Participation in these activities can contribute to success in school (e.g. higher school attendance, higher language re-designation rates, impact on homework completion and school grades). In addition, students excitement about school, self-confidence (especially in their academic ability), behavior in school, emotional adjustment, and peer relationships will also improve.

·         The standards movement and Federal No Child Left Behind legislation have called attention to the achievement gap between higher- and lower-income students. Adding targeted academic supports to students’ non-school hours is one proven vehicle for addressing this achievement gap. In addition, academic supports meet established criteria from major funding sources, such as the 21^st Century Community Learning Centers program.

 

 

Why this module now?

In the early stages of developing community schools, many partners are most focused on their priorities of improving achievement in schools. There is little understanding or knowledge of how the different types of academics provide for the needs of their students and how to provide the right support. This content also helps to clarify whose responsibility it is to provide which support. In many cases, there are unrealistic expectations on community-based organizations to provide remediation which they may not be qualified to do. This becomes an easy port of entry for many community schools that are in an exploring or emerging stage.

 

 

What did we do?

Leadership teams explored how to integrate the three kinds of academic supports outlined above with schools’ core instructional programs, using several frameworks—child development domains, youth development, content standards, and effective after-school practice. After learning about these four frameworks, leadership teams had an opportunity to apply new knowledge to the specifics of their school and student populations.

 

 

 

How did we do it?

 

·         Mini-lectures on fostering academic success by maximizing the potential of out-of-school time; on applying knowledge of child and adolescent development to program design; and on basing OST academic supports on California content standards.

·         Team activities on identifying risks and opportunities during different developmental stages; on categorizing and analyzing current out-of-school time programs offered at each school according to the remediation/enrichment/support framework; and on creating a standards-based lesson plan for after school.

 

 

Reflections and Lessons Learned

·         The five ACSD schools were at very different stages of planning and implementing after-school programs. Having a better sense of this variety before bringing partners together could have allowed planners to scaffold more and different types of opportunities to promote cross-site learning among the teams given their various stages.

·         Most participants were unfamiliar with the research on out-of-school time and with the curricular resources available for out-of-school time programming. We found this orientation to just scrape the surface of the topic and subsequent workshops or additional mini-sessions could have been done here or could have been done on an ongoing basis.

·         Some of the teams did not have enough teacher representation. Service providers had a sense that they could not align program activities with content standards without the support and expertise of teachers.

·         This module did not involve parent and community involvement as much as other sessions and it may have been important to draw clearer connections between the interdependence and connection between this area and family and community.