Educational quality of the out-of-school care in the Netherlands

After-school care has witnessed an explosive growth since the beginning of this century. This rapid increase has strengthened the demand for a conceptualization of the pedagogical quality and a validated measure for quality assessments.

This study describes the results of the first assessment of the pedagogical quality of afterschool care in the Netherlands, including the development and validation of its scientific measurement. The pedagogical quality of afterschool care, as determined by external raters, is predominantly adequate to good (e.g., emotional support by staff, indoor and outdoor space, organization), although there are also weaker spots (e.g., explicit stimulation of children's development). Future research should make clear whether the pedagogical quality is stable and whether this type of care afterschool care may be related to school and other forms of leisure activities.