The Impact of After-School Programs: Motivation for Success in Low-Income Youth

Abstract

Evidence that after-school programs can have educational benefits for youth, and that program quality matters is growing (Yohalem et al., 2009). Specifically, existing literature suggests that federal funding is allocated towards "high quality" programs with the goal of helping youth do better in school (After School Alliance, 2009; U.S. Department of Education, 2009), and that both structure (Fauth et al., 2007; Vandell & Corasaniti, 1988) and adult involvement (Pierce et al., 1999; Roffman et al., 2001) are considered to be elements of high quality programs. To support the rationale that it is important to provide evidence to continue investing in after-school programs that help youth achieve academically, it is imperative to first understand why there is a relation between quality of an after-school program and academic outcome. The current study aimed to address the mechanisms behind why after-school program quality matters for academic engagement in youth. Specifically, the current study employed an evidence-based framework to test how aspects of motivation (e.g., competence and relatedness) can be positively related to academic engagement in 57 low-income school-age children. Although not confirming the direct association between after-school program quality and academic engagement, findings suggest that children's sense of competence and aspects of relatedness are significantly and positively related to how engaged they are in school. Implications, such as incorporating the developmental needs of children in after-school programs, and the need to study these associations within other after-school programs serving low-income youth, are discussed.