WHO CONDUCTED IT: Robert M. Goerge and Robert J. Chaskin, Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago.
WHAT THEY FOUND: Freshmen were more likely to spend time alone, with friends or doing homework than they were to engage in structured after-school activities. They also were slightly more likely to be supervising siblings or other kids.
WHO WAS STUDIED: Nearly 16,000 9th-graders from 60 high schools in Chicago responded to a survey about what they did after school. Survey results were weighted to accurately reflect the city’s racial and ethnic makeup.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Goerge suggests that more can be done to get kids to participate in after-school programs. “If there were more marketing to kids about after-school programs, we might see more participation,” he says.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: The study “What Ninth Grade Students In The Chicago Public Schools Do In Their Out-Of-School Time” can be found online at
www.chapinhall.uchicago.edu.