The problem of this study is to make an evaluation of the out-of-class activity program of the Sherman High School.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the recreational program of certain junior high schools in the Texas Panhandle to determine the extent to which they meet accepted criteria for this type of program.

Since more demand is being made of the school to teach democracy--and to practice what it teaches--this work is an attempt to show how some phases of the democratic way of living can be incorporated into a student activity program of a high school, and to offer a democratic plan for the coordination and administration of these student activities.

The purposes of this study are: (1) to determine the popularity of extra-curricular organizations existing in the school as a means of indicating the successful and the unsuccessful groups in the school, (2) to establish the relationships of certain factors to the popularity of the activities so that efforts may be made to improve less successful activities, (3) to discover the extent and the popularity of social activities provided by the city of Cleburne, Texas, for the high school students in order that administrators of the school may have more insight into the extent of the need of high school students for social activities sponsored by the school.

Many studies have been made on leaders in a school situation and on the desirable traits which go together to make for good leadership qualities. However, very few have dealt with the relationship between leaders, church affiliation, and religious beliefs, which is the main purpose of this study.

The State of Texas implemented the No Pass-No Play Rule within House Bill 72 in the spring semester of 1985. The addition of this section to the state education code was a part of the state's efforts toward educational reform. The perceived rationale implied in House Bill 72 is that extracurricular activities can inspire student motivation and increase student achievement. The No Pass-No Play Rule seems to imply that there is a relationship between student achievement and extracurricular activities, and further implies that a student can be motivated to achieve by the desire to continue to participate in extracurricular activities. The problem of this study was a comparison of academic achievement for high school pupils involved in extracurricular activities and those who did not participate in extracurricular activities under the Texas No Pass-No Play Rule. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of extracurricular activities on the academic achievement of high school students, specifically looking at the years 1983 through 1986, when the No Pass-No Play Rule was implemented. This study was an ex post facto study with data obtained from a cooperating Texas school district. Students were matched on critical variables, and their scores on a measure of achievement were analyzed to determine if there was any relationship between extracurricular activities and achievement. Repeated measures of achievement were also analyzed to determine if students involved in extracurricular activities scored differently from those not involved in extracurricular activities over this time period in which the No Pass-No Play Rule was implemented. Results indicated that for those students involved in this study, there was no significant difference on a measure of achievement for students involved in extracurricular activities and those who did not participate. Results also indicated that in the years 1983 through 1986 all students involved in the study declined slightly in their achievement scores, regardless of involvement with extracurricular activities.

The purposes of the study were (1) to determine the perceptions of high school principals and special education directors toward the participation by mentally retarded (MR) and learning disabled (LD) students in extracurricular activities in small, medium, and large schools, (2) to compare the perceptions of high school principals and special education directors, (3) to determine the perceptions of high school principals and special education directors toward the mandates of Public Law 94-142 which deal with extracurricular activities, (4) to compare the perceptions of principals and special education directors in regard to those mandates, (5) to compare the perceptions of high school principals in the three school sizes, and (6) to compare the perceptions of special education directors in the three school sizes. Based on the findings of this study the following conclusions are presented. 1. It appears that working closely with the special education program may help to improve perceptions toward students and laws affecting them. 2. It appears that principals’ perceptions may be improved through a more personal relationship with and awareness of MR and LD students and the laws affecting their education. 3. Low scores in regard to Public Law 94-142 may indicate an intolerance and lack of understanding of the law or philosophical differences in regard to mandated programs. 4. Low scores by principals in particular on the law section may be due to lack of ample time available to study the law. 5. There appears to be no differences in perceptions of principals in Texas high schools regardless of school size. 6. It appears that smaller schools with fewer special education students have special education directors with more positive perceptions than the directors in other school sizes.