Participation in Student Activities and Achievement: A Covariance Structural Analysis

Abstract

The place of student activities within the public educational system of this country remains an issue. Some proponents of educational reform argue that nonclassroom activities compete with academic learning for the student's time and attention. That argument implicitly assumes a causal relationship between youth activities and academic achievement. Using the High School and Beyond sophomore cohort data set, I examined that implied causal relationship between level of student participation in extracurricular/cocurricular activities and academic achievement. The model examined accounts for the effects of gender, family background, academic ability, and other competing time-use habits. The fmdings suggest that academic achievement is enhanced by student participation and raise questions about the rationale behind rules excluding academically marginal students from participation in extracurricular and cocurricular activities.As the star flanker back on his high school football team, Johnny was well known throughout the whole county, but he failed one class last year and made C -grades in two others. Under his school system's "2.0 Rule," he is ineligible to participate in sports this year. Additionally, under that same policy, Johnny is also ineligible to be a member of the cocurricular student association (Vocational Industrial Clubs of America, VICA) for the auto mechanics class that he is taking. The policy was implemented by the local school board to help improve the "climate of academic excellence" in the school.

A person-centered investigation of academic motivation and its correlates in high school

“…Past research suggests that particular activities are associated with distinct academic outcomes (Broh, 2002;Camp, 1990;Fredricks & Eccles, 2005, 2006, 2008Hanks & Eckland, 1976), which could suggest that students with certain academic motives might be drawn to different activities. For example, students in profiles with more controlled forms of extrinsic motivation -i.e., high quantity and poor quality profilesmay choose to engage in activities that serve to strengthen their college applications.…”

Cohort and Gender Differences in Extracurricular Participation: The Relationship Between Activities, Math Achievement, and College Expectations

“…Participation in school activities has also been associated with decreased risk of dropout and criminal arrest among teens classified as ''high risk'' (Mahoney 2000). Several studies have found an association between participation in school activities and higher standardized test scores, grades, and educational aspirations (Broh 2002;Camp 1990;Eccles et al 2003;Holland and Andre 1987;Marsh 1992;Spady 1970).…”

“…Several studies have found that television watching had no association with measures of student achievement, such as grades and tests in reading and math (Camp 1990;Gaddy 1986;Gortmaker et al 1990). …”

The Effect of Extracurricular Activities in the Educational Process: Influence on Academic Outcomes?

“…Indeed, in their summary of the relevant research, Holland and Andre (1987) and Otto (1982) lament the absence of longitudinal designs with selection controls and note that the strong positive results reported at that time may be due to the flawed use of cross-sectional designs and inadequate or nonexistent selection control methods. Cross-sectional studies published since these reviews continue to find positive relationships (Camp 1990;Gerber 1996;Lamborn et al 1992). Only Leuptow and Kayser (1973) found no relationship in a study of how participation in athletics is related to grades and educational aspirations.…”