Overview

Out-of-school time (OST) settings are powerful contexts for youth development when programs and services are intentionally designed. Youth Development Principles and Practices in Out-of-School Time Settings was written to increase the capacity of students and professionals to facilitate youths optimal transition to adulthood through maximizing the developmental benefits accrued by participating in OST programs and experiences. Peter A. Witt and Linda L. Caldwell, two well-respected researchers in the youth development field, have brought together a group of outstanding authors who provide an exceptional blend of theory- and practice-based information critical to anyone seeking to conceptualize, design, and evaluate OST programs. All chapters are based on tenets of positive youth development necessary to enable youth to thrive. The book is divided into five sections: (1) youth development principles and foundational information (e.g., youth today as well as an historical perspective on youth work); (2) developing youths potential (including specific chapters on leisure and recreation, youth sport, nature-based activities and the arts); (3) systematic program planning and evaluation of youth programs. (4) the role of adults and families in the lives of youth; (5) issues of diversity in youth development (e.g., race and ethnicity, immigrant, LGBT, and ability level). A final chapter discusses the knowledge, skills, and behaviors necessary to become a skilled youth professional. Each chapter ends with thought-provoking discussion questions and assignments that encourage application and further exploration of the chapters content. The book is a must read for students and practitioners seeking to understand youth today and support their development through out-of-school time programs.

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9781571679154

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Author Information

Peter A. Witt holds the Bradberry Recreation and Youth Development Endowed Chair in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences at Texas A&M University. Peter has received numerous awards, including the Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt Award for Recreation Research from the National Recreation and Park Association (1988) and the Distinguished Colleague Award from the National Recreation and Park Association. In 2004 he received the Robert W. Crawford Achievement Award for work in youth development, given annually by the National Recreation Foundation (2004). Linda L. Caldwell is a Professor of recreation and park management in the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management at Penn State University. Linda received her PhD at the University of Maryland (1986).Her research interests center on the intersection of youth, leisure, and health, both domestically and internationally, primarily focusing on developing youth competencies and healthy lifestyles and reducing risky behavior in leisure. She is the author of a new school-based curriculum, TimeWise: Taking Charge of Free Time (ETR Associates). She has also coauthored HealthWise South Africa: Life Skills for Young Adults, which is being evaluated in Cape Town, South Africa. Linda has been an associate editor for a number of journals, including the Journal of Leisure Research and the Therapeutic Recreation Journal. She served as guest editor for the Journal of Park and Recreation Administration special issue on youth and leisure (2000) and a special issue of Therapeutic Recreation Journal on youth (2001). She was also a guest coeditor of a special issue of children and adolescents leisure for World Leisure Journal (2003). She sits on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Association of Leisure Studies, and is secretary of the Children and Youth working group of the World Leisure and Recreation Association. Linda loves traveling, gardening, cooking, photography, being in nature (especially scuba diving and camping), and spending time with her husband and cats.

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