Out-of-School & After School Programs

Rockman et al Cooperative offers decades of experience in conducting research and evaluations to support engaged learning in after-school and summer programs. Our expertise in informal learning research allows us to generate rich information about program implementation and impacts to inform stakeholders and program development. We use a participatory research approach that engages stakeholders throughout the research process, and we specialize in conducting research to inform program development at scale. We are also experienced in facilitating partnerships between educators, schools and community-based learning centers.

Please explore selected examples of our projects with after school and summer programs below. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your project with you and to provide you with more information about our tailored services. Please Contact Us to schedule a free 30-minute Q&A session with a consultant.

Selected Projects Include

  • Black Girls Code

    Black Girls Code (BGC) is an out-of-school program designed to provide girls of color opportunities to learn in-demand skills in technology and computer programming during a time when they are considering career paths. The goal of this program is twofold: To introduce programming and technology to a new generation of coders and to sustain this interest well into high school and college. Since 2012, REA has examined the impact of BGC’s Culturally-Relevant STEM programming that embraces the intersectionality of its students (culture, race/ethnicity/gender), sense of belonging for girls of color, short and long-term program impact, and career inspirations and pathways. We have utilized case study design, focus groups, interviews, and surveys to measure BGC’s impact.

    Report: Black Girls Code Final Report
  • Photo courtesy of NWABR via CC licensing.

    Coastal Marine Biolabs – Neurolab M3

    NeuroLab M3 is a comprehensive research education program that carefully guides high school students through a series of in-depth, interdisciplinary, and discovery-based explorations of scientific models, model organisms, and model systems in developmental neuroscience. The 5-year project includes immersive residential research institutes in comparative functional genomics for rising juniors and seniors. The evaluation will examine outcomes for participating students using longitudinal surveys and content knowledge tests.

  • Photo courtesy of Pamela Van Halsemar.

    Developing Makerspaces in Libraries Throughout California

    REA served as external evaluator for Developing Makerspaces in Libraries through California, a partnership between the California State Library, Regallium Consulting, and the Bay Area Discovery Museum. This three year project helped to establish unique community-driven makerspaces in ten under-resourced public libraries across California. The participating libraries are geographically spread out across the state, and were selected by prioritizing those sites that were under-resourced as defined by budget, staffing, or serving a high needs community. Each makerspace uniquely reflects the community it serves in terms of the range of program activities and types of implementation models. An essential component for the sustainability of these library maker programs is the development of strategic collaborative partnerships, where the library collaborates with the local maker ecosystem including education institutions, community business and cultural institutions, local makers and artisans, civic groups and government. Each library also conducts their own ongoing evaluation of program activities and impact. By the end of August 2020, the project will publish a comprehensive Toolkit that will include a detailed description of the steps necessary in developing a public library makerspace, including needs assessment, budget and space planning, training, and partnership development. REA assisted in the development of the Toolkit. The Toolkit will be available at MakersintheLibrary.org

    REA-led evaluation activities during the project included conducting a 10-site needs assessment with library staff, partners, and patrons, providing training to library staff on evaluation methods, reviewing evaluation instruments, and conducting an overall aggregate evaluation of training activities, project support and project impact. For more information, check out this video presented at the 2020 Play.Make.Learn virtual conference.

     

  • Photo by RODNAE Productions: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-people-woman-girl-7606134/

    Northwestern University: Science Club

    Northwestern University’s Science Club is an afterschool program in which graduate student researchers mentor 5th-8th grade students at two Boys & Girls Clubs in Chicago. Over the course of a full academic semester, mentors and students complete science-themed modules and science fair projects. REA conducted a formative evaluation, funded by NIH, of student and mentor experiences and outcomes via surveys, interviews, and site observations. We also conducted a retrospective study of youth and mentor alumni that utlized personal meaning mapping, surveys, and interviews to explore how mentorship and the Science Club experience influenced youth’s science identity and mentors’ identity as community-focused science educators.

  • Photo by Arthur Krijgsman: https://www.pexels.com/photo/girl-with-safety-glasses-holding-a-pipette-on-a-science-experiment-6036669/

    The Franklin Institute: GSK Science in the Summer

    The GSK Science in the Summer™ program is a free, educational program that offers youth hands-on experience to explore science during their summer months. The program, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline and coordinated by The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, PA, reaches youth in the Philadelphia area and across national museum sites. REA explored the program’s implementation and its impacts on youth, caregivers, educators, and national museum sites using a mixed-methods approach that employed program registration information, observations, interviews, and pre-post surveys.