Effectiveness of Afterschool 4-H Enrichment Programs

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to determine the effectiveness of afterschool 4-H enrichment programs to increase interest and participation in the Clarke County 4-H program. Ten of the youth program participants completed a survey to rate their level of satisfaction with the program, personal perception of science, and aspirations toward future participation in science activities. The results showed that 60% of the participants like to see how things are made or invented, get excited about science, and want to learn more about science; 70% of the participants like experimenting and testing ideas while 80% of the participants reported liking science; and 100% of the participants indicated at least some interest in participating in another afterschool science program. Recommendations were made to create a logic model that reflects intentional programming and opportunities for expanded evaluation, to conduct a follow-up survey or interview with youth participants in 3 to 6 months after participation in the program, to expand STEM learning opportunities to include in-school 4-H enrichment programs, to provide youth with choice of electives and 4-H projects based on interest and prior exposure and to conduct future studies to evaluate aspirations, awareness, and participation in afterschool programs that is contingent on school day participation in this content area is proposed.