McREL Research Finds Out-of-School Programs
Boost Achievement
December 2, 2003
AURORA,
Colo. — A quantitative analysis of 56 studies
of after-school and summer programs found these programs have
a small, though statistically significant positive impact on
student achievement in reading and mathematics.
The study, conducted by Aurora, Colo.-based
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning, looked at
371 studies of the impact
of out-of-school time (OST) strategies (i.e., after-school and
summer programs) conducted since 1984 and found 56 that met high
standards for rigor — in part, the use of control/comparison
groups.
Using meta-analytic techniques to synthesize the results of these
56 studies, McREL researchers found overall, out-of-school time
strategies had an effect size of .10 standard deviation, which
converts statistically into a gain of four percentile points on
a standardized achievement test.
“At first blush, this difference in effect size may seem
minor,” noted McREL President and CEO Tim Waters. “But
it’s important to note that these results were achieved with
strategies that represent a relatively small period of exposure
with students. Even more striking, these results have been achieved
with students who struggle most to meet high standards for learning.”
Moreover, McREL researchers found far
greater effect sizes when they further analyzed these data. For
example, they found an effect
size of .26 (standard deviations), or a gain of 10 percentile points,
for reading scores of lower elementary (K–2) students. They
also found an effect size of .44, or a gain of 17 percentile points,
for high school students. Overall, the largest positive effect
size (.50, a gain of 19 percentile points) occurred for reading
strategies that employed one-on-one tutoring.
In summary, key findings
from the study are as follows:
OST strategies can have
positive effects on the achievement of low-achieving or at-risk
students in reading and
mathematics.
No difference in effectiveness
can be attributed to timeframes for delivering OST programs
(i.e., after or summer
school).
Students in early elementary
grades are more likely than older students to benefit from
OST strategies to improve reading;
older students may benefit more from OST strategies to improve
mathematics.
OST strategies need not
focus solely on academic activities to have positive effects
on student achievement.
OST strategies that provide
one-on-one tutoring for low-achieving or at-risk students
have strong positive effects
on student achievement in reading.
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McREL is a nationally recognized, private,
nonprofit organization located in Aurora, Colo., dedicated to
improving education for
all students through applied research, product development and
service. Its staff of highly respected educators and researchers
focuses on providing educators and policymakers with the highest
quality, field-tested, research-based products and services available
in PreK–16 education.
