The increased demand for Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) has been linked to changes
that have occurred in the family structure and work habits. OSHC programs operating
on school sites under the management of a committee of parents and school
representatives provide parents with one option to meet the needs for care of primary age
children.
This study examined the issue of OSHC from the perspectives of workers involved in the
provision of services in government school sites in the ACT. Data were gathered by way
of semi-structured interviews with nineteen coordinators from sixteen After School Care
(ASC) centres. The data were analysed to find similarities in the experiences of workers
interviewed. Extracts from the interviews are presented in the findings to illustrate the
perceptions care givers have about their work and areas where changes can be made to
improve the quality of ASC services.
The study provides information on the factors affecting the provision of quality services
and suggests possible directions for future planning and research in this area. The
findings indicate that the care givers interviewed perceived their role as a positive
influence in the lives of children and families. Care givers sought to provide relaxed
environments for children after the school day. Many centres operated with the strong
support of parents, schools and management committees. The findings suggest that ASC
centres can and do operate successfully on school sites in the ACT and that care givers
were generally happy with the level of service provided. However, variability in the
facilities and support provided to centres was noted.
The study concludes that real improvement to the quality of programs and support of
workers is dependent on the introduction of nationally recognised standards in the
provision of ASC.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/218958 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Glyde, Jo, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Teacher Education |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Jo Glyde |
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