Prof. Marianne Schuepbach and Prof.Ludwig Stecher organized this symposium. It consisted of a presentation of five papers concerning afterschool programs and their quality in different countries, followed by a discussion on staff professionalism as basis of the educational quality of extended education programs.

The first paper aimed to clarify the nature of afterschool programs in Japan based on data from nationwide surveys, and was presented by Prof. Fuyuko Kanefuji, Bunkyo University, Japan. Prof. Marianne Schuepbach, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany, examined activities and their quality in all-day schools in Switzerland. Prof. Gil Noam, Rebecca K. Browne and Dr. Patricia Allen, Harvard University and The PEAR Institute, presented a U.S. study on supporting science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) in after-school. The paper from Sweden by Prof. Anna-Lena Ljusberg, Stockholm University, Sweden, focused on the training for teachers working in extracurricular activities. The last presentation compared the involvement of teachers in extracurricular activities at their school on an international level. It was held by Dr. Stephan Kielblock, Leibnitz Institute for Research and Information in Education and Prof. Ludwig Stecher, University of Giessen, Germany. The discussion was led by Prof. Anna Klerfelt, Stockholm University, Sweden.

We enjoyed the active participation in our symposium and were glad to connect with the Out-of-School Time SIG 160 of the AERA!