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Experience Corps

An Evidence-Based Practice

This practice has been Archived and is no longer maintained.

Description

Founded in 1996, Experience Corps (EC) is a nonprofit organization that harnesses the human capitol of retired Americans to increase literacy rates in urban, low-income elementary schools while at the same time addressing the need for retired individuals to engage in social and cognitive behaviors. Following a successful trial in Baltimore, MD, EC has expanded to include 2,000 members helping 20,000 students in 19 cities around the United States. Volunteers undergo a 30-hour training course in which they are instructed in math and literacy tutoring, conflict resolution, and a number of other skills. Following the instructional course provided by EC, local elementary schools place the volunteers in a variety of roles, ranging from tutors to library assistants. EC focuses on improving elementary school reading due to the fact that closing the achievement gap in literacy is essential during the period between kindergarten and third grade. Federal grants, private donations, and awards fund EC.

Goal / Mission

The goal of Experience Corps is to improve the cognitive, physical, and psychological function of retired senior citizens while simultaneously employing their free time to help narrow the achievement gap in urban, low-income elementary schools

Results / Accomplishments

A number of academic studies have verified the efficacy of Experience Corps in both increasing literacy in elementary schools and stimulating mental and cognitive function in volunteers. In a randomized control study of the Baltimore Experience Corps program performed by the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and the Greater Homewood Community Corporation, students in the Experience Corps program made significantly greater improvements over 4-8 months in grade specific reading skills and performance on the Woodcock Johnson Passage Comprehension assessment (p<.05) over the control group. In addition, a study performed by Johns Hopkins University found that volunteers in the Baltimore Experience Corps experienced significant improvement (p<.05) in cognitive function over a control group that was reflected in changes in brain activation patterns (as measured by fMRI). Furthermore, Experience Corps and its members have won numerous awards around the country, including one member who won the President's Service Award in 2006.

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
Experience Corps
Primary Contact
401 9th Street NW, 4th Floor
Washington, DC 20004
(202) 434-6400
info@experiencecorps.org
https://www.aarp.org/experience-corps/
Topics
Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education
Education / Student Performance K-12
Health / Older Adults
Organization(s)
Experience Corps
Date of publication
2011
Date of implementation
1996
Geographic Type
Urban
Location
USA
For more details
http://www.experiencecorps.org/assets/Education_An...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC278178...
Target Audience
Children, Older Adults, Racial/Ethnic Minorities

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Related Content for: Experience Corps

An Evidence-Based Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures showing improvement in the outcome(s) of interest after the implementation of the program (i.e. increase in smoking cessation, not just the delivery of a smoking cessation program). The outcome measure(s) is/are compared at relevant time periods before and after the intervention or program implementation. Alternatively, the evaluation study compares the outcome(s) between an intervention group and an appropriate control group.
  3. The study is of peer-review quality and presents numbers in a scientific manner; measurements of precision and reliability are included (e.g. confidence intervals, standard errors), results from statistical tests show a significant difference or change in the outcome measure(s), and relevant point estimates and p-values are presented. Note: if the results from an evaluation of a program are presented in a scientific manner and the outcome measure is improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant, the practice is classified as effective and not evidence-based.