It is estimated that several million school-age children and youth spend time without adult supervision daily. In most families, parents' schedules and children's schedules do not mesh. This is more true than ever before, because today's parents are working longer hours.
Many children leave empty houses in the morning and come home to empty houses in the afternoon.
California legislation and the Federal Dependent Care Block Grant for Child Care provide funding for School-Age programs. Research on the effects associated with School-Age programs serving children and young adolescents has found that the programs are associated with marked improvements in academic performance and school success. Rather, they enrich, extend, and expand the experiences of children and youth beyond those of the school day. For each of the Permit positions, the report proposes education requirements, experience requirements, alternative qualifications, the position authorization, and five-year renewal requirements. The survey, conducted with current practitioners in the School-Age field, was aimed at obtaining feedback on the proposals.