Abstract
A comparison was made of third and fourth grade children receiving three different types of after-school care in an Australian inner-city setting: Children in parental care whose mother was not in paid employment; children in parental care whose mother was in paid employment; and children attending an after-school care center for at least two hours two days weekly. No differences were found between the three groups on measures of self-esteem, anxiety, social status, life skills competence or academic achievement. These findings suggest that, at least for this age group and in this setting, there is no deleterious effect of after-school center care as compared with parental care.
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This study was carried out in collaboration with a research group of Master of Arts students at the University of Sydney. Each of these students made a substantial contribution to the design, data collection and data analysis phases of the study. They are: Pamela Costantini, Angela Fernandez-Villaverde, Natasha Gregory, Sally Hume, Elly Mason, Penelope Mayson, Elizabeth Makris, Rita Shackel and Luisa Simonelli. The enthusiasm and patience of the participating schools, children and their parents were greatly appreciated.
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Howie, P.M. After-school care arrangements and maternal employment: A study of the effects on third and fourth grade children. Child Youth Care Forum 25, 29–40 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02589273
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02589273