The National Center for Quality Afterschool

Helping local practitioners and state education agencies develop high-quality and balanced programs

About the Center

Additional Resources

Afterschool Research Briefs

SEDL's Afterschool Research Consortium (ARC) brings together SEDL researchers, key staff from each afterschool research project, and experts in the field to discuss and share accomplishments, challenges, and solutions. Periodically, the ARC develops papers and presentations documenting the lessons learned in order to advance the effective use of rigorous experimental research approaches in applied afterschool settings.

Three-Part Series - Randomized Control Trials

Implementing Randomized Controlled Trial Studies in Afterschool Settings: The State of the Field (2008)
SEDL provided analytic and technical support to three large-scale randomized controlled trials assessing the efficacy of promising literacy curriculum in afterschool settings on student academic achievement. This research brief is the first in a series of papers that are intended to provide the field with the insights culled from this collaborative effort.

Cover art for research brief

Key Issues and Strategies for Recruitment and Implementation in Large-Scale Randomized Controlled Trial Studies in Afterschool Settings (2008)
This research brief is the second in a series of papers intended to address some of the key challenges faced by awardees in order to provide insights to the research and practice community. The information for this brief includes lessons extracted from ARC discussions and activities, guidance provided by ARC experts, site visits and interviews conducted by SEDL, and the findings described in the larger literature of afterschool research.

Cover art for research brief

The National Partnership for Quality Afterschool Learning Randomized Controlled Trial Studies of Promising Afterschool Programs: Summary of Findings (2009)
In an effort to answer questions about the impact of promising afterschool interventions containing academic content, the U.S. Department of Education funded three randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies to evaluate potential benefits on student achievement. The RCT project staff submitted final reports for each of their study's findings in Fall 2008, and they are the source of the information synthesized and presented here. This afterschool research brief, the final in a three-part series, presents an overview of the studies and a summary of implementation and impact findings across the 2 years of funding.

Cover art for research brief
Online Training for Afterschool Staff
The Afterschool Training Toolkit is available online free of charge.

The following resources can be used with the online Afterschool Training Toolkit to give you the resources you need to build fun, innovative, and academically enriching afterschool activities.