Educational support in an Expanded Learning Time initiative: Optimizing its components to promote inclusive education

Expanded Learning Time (ELT) measures have been implemented internationally to reduce the likelihood of academic underachievement among students at risk. The goal of this article is to examine the components of an ELT initiative aimed at supporting students at risk of academic failure in order to optimize the components that can improve its use and organization. Through a mixed method research approach, we have analyzed the experiences of 1,786 5th through 10th graders, 238 teachers and 126 instructors of a city-wide after-school initiative in Spain. This within-group study examines the design of the support, the environment, and the interactions between stakeholders as key components to optimize this support and promote equity. The results show which support components are related to greater support use. The results also suggest understanding these measures as additional support placed within an enriched support network. Implications for practice, research and policy towards this type of initiative are also discussed.

Creating a Rising Tide: Improving Social and Emotional Learning Across California

Given the recent emphasis on social and emotional development, many professionals who manage, develop, or influence expanded learning systems are beginning to ask, “How do we better prepare staff to promote social and emotional development?” California has adopted a statewide professional development strategy for publicly-funded expanded learning programs that is designed to raise awareness of the importance of social and emotional learning (SEL) among practitioners and build tools for the field to support implementation. The strategy—led by a partnership among a state agency, expanded learning intermediaries, and funders—combines leadership development, field-building initiatives, and program-level supports. It also complements the current expanded learning system. In this article, we describe the statewide strategy and discuss how it addresses workforce challenges, the core levers that California used to develop the strategy, and why and how the state-level leadership prioritized social and emotional learning. We conclude the article with lessons learned about collaboration, implementation, and assessing impact.

Expanded learning: A thought piece about terminology, typology, and transformation

What is it about afterschool that gives it so much potential to powerfully influence educational best practices around the world? This paper will explore what truly defines “afterschool” beyond the time- and location-based pedagogy of the term and will make the case for the use of “expanded learning” or “expanded opportunities” as the terms that most clearly describe this critical time of youth learning and development. This paper will explore the cultural and bureaucratic differences countries have that influence how young people spend their time and what those differences say about a country’s views on child development and its aspirations for its youth. Beyond an exploration of cultural differences, this paper will also discuss the trends that are influencing our international efforts to shift the view of expanded learning programs beyond a safe place to keep children occupied while their parents work, toward a fundamental space for child development and educational innovation.

Ubiquitous learning ecologies for a critical cybercitizenship

The aim of this research is to identify and analyse the ubiquitous learning acquired though blending education settings devoted to the 'lifelong training of trainers' and how these contribute to the development of a conscious, critic and engaged citizenship. Through active exploration of the learning process, the study analyses the 'soft skills” acquired which enhance performance in work and daily life, with the purpose of detecting the process of ubiquitous learning often overlooked in formal education. To this end, the study case presented here draws upon a data triangulation of qualitative and quantitative multisource information (questionnaires, interviews, participant observation, discussion groups, individual and collective diaries) which includes the study of the semantic networks consisting of learners’ own utterances. The results obtained indicate that the soft skills related to the capacity of selfdevelopment, the use of innovative resources, the enhancement of social cooperation, the ability to meet cognitive and social challenges, and the functional learning as produced though expanded learning, have the potential to pave the way for the empowerment of peoples, communities and social movements. But this form of expanded learning, as open, collaborative, democratic and committed learning, must be actively supported if future generations are not only to be consumers but also cooperative producers in a socially shared world. El objetivo de este trabajo ha sido detectar y analizar los aprendizajes ubicuos adquiridos en entornos educativos expandidos destinados a la «formación permanente de formadores» y cómo estos influyen en la construcción de una ciudadanía consciente, crítica y comprometida. Se han analizado las «soft skills» adquiridas para el desenvolvimiento efectivo en el trabajo o la vida diaria, mediante la exploración activa del proceso formativo. Se ha tratado así de detectar el aprendizaje ubicuo que suele resultar invisible para la educación formal. Con este propósito, el estudio de caso aquí presentado recurre a una triangulación de análisis cualitativo y cuantitativo de información multifuente (cuestionarios, entrevistas, observación participante, grupos de discusión, diarios individuales y colectivos), que incluye análisis de red semántica de las expresiones de los participantes. Los resultados obtenidos nos indican que las «soft skills» relacionadas con la capacidad de desarrollo autónomo, el uso de medios y recursos transformadores, la potenciación de la cooperación social, la resolución de desafíos cognitivos y sociales, la potenciación del compromiso cívico y del aprendizaje funcional, que genera el aprendizaje expandido, se pueden convertir en un instrumento para el empoderamiento de personas, colectivos y movimientos sociales. Pero este aprendizaje expandido, como aprendizaje abierto y colaborativo, democrático y comprometido, requiere un apoyo consciente si se desea que las futuras generaciones no solo sean consumidoras, sino productoras colaborativas en un mundo socialmente compartido