Powerful learning experiences often happen outside of the school day. EDC builds, implements, and evaluates out-of-school and nonformal programs that deliver core civic, educational, and life skills to young people in diverse environments.
In the United States, EDC’s support for out-of-school time (OST) and nonformal learning leverages children’s and youth’s strengths to help them succeed at school, engage in their communities, and lead productive and healthy lives. We design, evaluate, and provide technical assistance on high-quality OST programs that prepare young people for success—whether pursuing social and academic enrichment after school or leaving school and starting a first job.
Internationally, EDC develops and implements programs that support educational and economic opportunities for out-of-school youth. Working within the unique context of each country, we partner with governments, industry, and nongovernmental organizations to provide young people with the skills, knowledge, and opportunities they need to be market-ready and contribute to society.
Related Content
EDC Talks: How Do You Develop High-Quality Out-of-School-Time Programs?
Children can learn a lot from programs that take place outside of school hours.
4 Ways to Strengthen Youth Programs in Conflict and Crisis Areas
Building youth programs in unstable regions can be challenging. Here are four ideas for practitioners.
A Success Story in Senegal
Meet Adama Diedhiou, a participant in EDC’s workforce development program in Senegal.
A Second Chance at School in Mali
In Mali, accelerated education is helping thousands of children get back to school.
3 Ways to Stop the Summer Slide
Want to help kids keep learning this summer? Here are some tips for parents and caregivers.
New Entrepreneurs Launched in Rwanda
EDC’s workforce development efforts in Rwanda are helping young people build the skills for work.
Projects
Resources
Here are a few of our resources on out-of-school learning. To see more, visit our Resources section.
This program guide offers a resource for development specialists initiating or strengthening integrated literacy programs for youth aged 15 to 24 who are not involved informal education.
The Committee on Successful Out-of-School STEM Learning, appointed by the National Research Council’s Board on Education, was charged with identifying effective out-of-school STEM settings and prog
The USAID Huguka Dukore activity is a 5-year (December 9, 2016-December 8, 2021) youth employment program that will provide 40,000 out-of-school youth, including 34,000 new youth and 6,000 Akazi Kanoze alumni, with market-relevant employability skills and pathways to new or better employment.
This collection of stories highlights the success of youth who participated in the USAID Huguka Dukore Akazi Kanoze project in Rwanda.
This 2-page document summarizes the impact of IDEJEN, the Haitian Out-of-School Youth Livelihood Initiative, which addresses the education and livelihood needs of youth ages 15-24 with little or no primary education.
The investigations in Explore It! provide an experiential foundation for the development of concepts aligned with the national standards that are addressed in formal school curricula. Explore It!
This report outlines the need to work together with new and unlikely allies, other than education actors alone, to reimagine how our interconnected systems—health, education, economic development, and the protection of our planet—can work toward Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education and beyond.
This executive summary presents an overview of results from EDC’s evaluation study of Cha-Ching Money Adventures.
EDC developed the Educator Assessment of Learners’ Soft Skills Ability (EALSA), a formative soft skills assessment, for use with secondary and tertiary students in East and West Africa.
Drawing on its extensive work in fragile environments, EDC developed this set of case studies that chronicles best practices, lessons learned, and stories of success.