Afterschool Computer Labs

A Missouri 4-H project to assist schools and other community organizations to start and enhance learning about and with computers in a recreational setting.

Section links for this page:
Project Model
Scope of the Initial Project and Evaluation
Project Expansion/Best Practices
Continuing Project Activities
Contests and Competitions

 

Project Model
The project focuses on a non-formal, recreation model for after-school computer labs. The primary purpose of the model is to create a supervised and supportive environment that encourages youth to play computer games that have positive educational content. The model encourages the sites to add educational value to the games with discussions and additional activities. The computer game strategy is based on the strong interest most youth have with computer games. The educational strategies are the standard 4-H pedagogy of experiential learning within a youth development framework.
Four Models

The 4-H/DESE After School Computer Lab (ASCL) was started as a partnership between the University of Missouri 4-H program, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary (DESE), and local schools. DESE provided grants to 4-H to recruit and assist schools to develop computer-based afterschool programs for elementary through junior high school youth. The project resources and design has been extended to other community-based organizations. Later, partnerships extended to afterschool programs and youth serving organizations implementing labs in low-income communities.

Scope of the Initial Project and Evaluation

Participating Sites
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education funded 4-H proposals to facilitate the start-up of 10 sites in 1998, 20 sites in 1999, and 20 sites in 2000. In addition to the 50 proposed sites, 37 additional afterschool computer lab sites were either started or enhanced. The total number of afterschool computer lab sites was 87 at the time the program evaluation was conducted. Sixty-five of the labs were located in schools and twenty-two were located in non-school programs such as public housing, community centers, and Boys and Girls clubs. The 87 sites were in 51 school districts in 40 counties and the city of St. Louis.

Demonstration of a Low Resource Model
The initial 4-H/DESE after school computer lab project was designed as a demonstration model and was not meant to address program sustainability. The project was intended to demonstrate to local 4-H faculty, schoolteachers, administrators, and parents a basic, low resource model for afterschool computer labs. Each local site adapted the basic model to meet local resources and needs. Standard support for local sites included six hours of training, a resource notebook, a set of software, and a $500 mini-grant. Additional technical assistance was provided by 4-H for continued program development thorough grant writing opportunities, collaborative community efforts, and educational programs.

Project Training
Training was a train-the-trainer model targeted toward 4-H youth staff and site directors who would then train additional site staff. A major portion of the training was becoming familiar with the operation and educational value of popular children’s software. The training focused on teaching and learning software with an emphasis on discovery-based learning. A resource manual was the basis for much of the training. It included information and resources about:

• After-school time and program research
• 4-H/DESE project description
• Youth development theory and practice
• Learning with and about computers
• Software for children
• Teaching with computers
• Adding educational value to computer games
• Program planning and lab management
• Support and resource development
• 4-H program information

Project Evaluation

Playing to Learn
An evaluation of the participation of upper elementary and middle school students in Missouri recreational computer lab programs.
Evaluation Executive Summary (PDF)
Order Form (PDF) for the complete evaluation report

Brightening Horizons
This report summarizes and interprets the results of computer skill assessments given to children at Missouri 4-H Afterschool Computer Lab sites during 2003-04.
Evaluation Report (PDF)

Project Expansion/Best Practices

AmeriCorps*VISTA Project
The 4-H Afterschool Computer Lab VISTA program was a collaborative program sponsored by University of Missouri Extension and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Through Missouri 4-H Youth Development Programs, AmeriCorps*VISTA members helped communities fight poverty. VISTA members worked in partnership with county Extension offices and community-based organizations, connecting youth to technology, and to their communities. During the three-year program, VISTA members assisted communities to establish, expand, and sustain afterschool computer labs that provided upper elementary and middle school age students with a safe environment and adult supervision during after school hours.

Related resources included:

• Brightening Horizons (PDF)
  This report summarizes and interprets the results of computer skill assessments given to children at Missouri 4-H Afterschool Computer Lab sites during 2003-04. The computer skills assessment was originally developed by the Family & Community Resource Program (FCRP) for use at its project sites, and was previously approved by the University of Missouri Campus Institutional Review Board as a low-risk research instrument.

• Project Accomplishments
  From 2002 to 2005, AmeriCorps*VISTAs acted as lab site coordinators in 17 low-income communities across the state of Missouri, introducing software and “value-added” activities, training staff and community volunteers to operate labs, and developing partnerships for ongoing training and computer technical support. They provided 19.9 member-years of service, started 12 new lab programs and expanded 18 existing lab programs, and reached a total of 4,367 youth. 229 volunteers contributed 2,560 hours of their time in computer labs, a figure valued at $38,690; during that period, $25,329 in in-kind donations and $38,875 in cash donations were received. An average of 255 youth regularly participated in labs every quarter, with an estimated 88% of participants coming from low-income households.

• Impact Summaries, written by the VISTAs during the end of their terms of service, capture the essence of their projects. Within this section, you can find out about their project goals, significant accomplishments, the number of youth reached, and contact information for those who wish to become involved.

• Missouri 4-H After School Computer Lab Resource Manual The manual contains information on a number of topics important to computer lab programs: positive youth development, learning with/about computers, software for children, computer teaching, adding educational value, resource development, program planning, and evaluation. This collection of resources is intended to serve as a reference, not a procedural guide.

Best Practices
During the three-year span of the Missouri 4-H ASCL VISTA project, it was noted that certain program practices contributed strongly to the success of afterschool computer lab programs. The following best practices were identified by monitoring computer labs in operation through the ASCL project, by distilling project documents such as site visit notes and progress reports, and by facilitating VISTA member discussions. These best practices are intended to assist any organization trying to establish an afterschool computer lab or seeking to incorporate technology into an afterschool setting; however, many of them are applicable to afterschool programs as a whole. These practices are:

• Invest in caring adults as well as children.
• Find a hook in order to recruit after school volunteers.
• Get youth hands-on involved with computers and games, and interacting with each other.
• Give experienced youth ownership by empowering them to take leadership roles in lab programs.
• Collaborate with other local and regional organizations to maximize impact.
• Recognize and engage the talents of youth as well as adults.
• Acknowledge, remain conscious of, and take advantage of the roles people play outside of your organization.
• Look at your computer lab program holistically; strengthen the weakest link.
• Bridge activities between the computer lab and the real world.
• Pool technology resources with other lab programs to share the costs (Example: Missouri 4-H statewide software and technology kit library).

Continuing Project Activities
The Missouri 4-H Afterschool Computer Lab (ASCL) project identified six primary ingredients as being essential to the success of a lab: a facility, computers, kids, software, technical support, and educational support. Issues such as resource development, community involvement, and support from organizations outside the local area also play a significant role.

The ASCL project can provide software, training, and consultation to groups interested in starting, expanding, or enhancing lab programs. A number of software-based projects and contests have been developed during the course of the project.  A wide variety of curricula are also available through the National 4-H Cooperative Curricula System.

The information below addresses a number of these issues. If you need further assistance, please contact State Staff.

• Software Library
  Starting an afterschool computer lab can be a challenging endeavor, but identifying age and content appropriate software for that lab can be even more time consuming! Purchasing software has its own drawbacks, as youth will eventually tire of playing the same games every day. A software library that multiple sites can access has the advantages of simplifying software selection by individual sites while allowing rotation of software when it is no longer being used.
  
  The 4-H Center for Youth Development at the University of Missouri has a software library selected to be age and content appropriate for Missouri youth programs. If you are interested in checking out software, contact your local Extension 4-H youth specialist or the 4-H Center for Youth Development.

• Software Based Projects
  Software based projects are designed for leaders and members to work together to have fun and learn with the software. The 4-H software based projects start with fun and educational computer games and software tools. Learning and leading guides add off-computer and group activities to extend the learning.
  
  Designing Your Own Space
  Making the Point
  Virtual Communities

• Technology Kits
  Technology offers many different paths and opportunities for complex youth development; it also gives children more ways to participate in 4-H. Digital photography, digital audio/video, robotics, web development, and geospatial technology are only a few of the technology areas currently being explored by 4-H youth.
  
  Missouri 4-H has a technology kit library that contains LEGO Mindstorms, robotics kits, and K’Nex construction kits. Missouri 4-H clubs and affiliated programs can check out kits by contacting your local Extension 4-H youth specialist or the 4-H Center for Youth Development.

• GPS/GIS
  GPS stands for Global Positioning System is basically a “high-tech compass!” It can tell you what direction you’re pointed, tell you where you are on the Earth, how fast you’re moving, and how far you are from other locations.

GIS stands for Geospatial Information System that is a “high-tech map!”  Unlike paper maps, a GIS can allow you to change the information shown as well as ask questions about the relationships between that information.

GPS receivers are fast becoming as common a tool in finding our way around our world as a paper map and a compass used to be, and GIS applications are changing the way we create maps and represent data about our environment. Beyond that level of usage is another realm where these technologies are simply the tools that allow us to visualize our world and solve the problems that face us. GIS is also one of the fastest growing technology-related career fields; from that standpoint, acquainting youth with the fundamentals of this technology area may prepare them for future success in this field.

• Community Mapping
  Community Mapping is a process involving youth, citizens, community professionals, and community decision-makers working together to learn and use geospatial tools such as GPS or GIS and data to address community and environmental issues. Community mapping provides a framework for teaching about, understanding, and communicating a wide range of relevant topics.

Computer Contests and Competitions
Competition can be used for motivating, teaching, and assessing progress. Youth generally enjoy friendly competitions and the desire to do well can be a strong motivation. The design and objectives of a competition can frame the content and put it into a context that helps youth apply what they are learning. Computer software and information technology based applications offer a wide range of contest opportunities.
For details, see Computer Contests and Competitions.