Studies of the effects of students playing sports in high school vary but results are mostly positive. This qualitative case study examined the perceptions of 15 teachers at a small rural Iowa high school to assess how they viewed the effects of sports participation on student athletes in the classroom and why the setting experienced a decline in participation numbers. The framework that drove this study was based on Pajares's concept that teacher expectations may influence students and their academic performance and behaviors. The data included individual interviews from 15 teachers and teacher/coaches who had a minimum of 5 years teaching experience and had student athletes in their classrooms. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed for emergent themes. Findings revealed that increased academic performance, learned leadership traits, and teamwork were the perceived benefits to sports participation. Missed class time and stressful time requirements on student athletes were the perceived detriments. Findings also indicated that a need for more cohesiveness better and communication between teachers and teacher/coaches, and a need for higher eligibility standards for student athletes to participate in athletics. These findings were used to develop a policy recommendation project that will update and overhaul the district's current athletic eligibility policy. This project will enable more students to participate in athletics and remain eligible for sports participation and additional tutoring. Social change could result from increased participation in athletics, improved academic performance, and greater cohesion among teachers at the school.

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between school connectedness and participation in extracurricular activities. A current gap in the research prevents a complete understanding of the relationship between extracurricular participation and school connectedness; therefore, this study aimed to bridge this gap. It is reasonable to suggest that by simply improving the amount, type, and availability of activities, schools have the potential to help students become more motivated in their role as both a student and a community member. The objective was to provide further support to research implying that increased participation in school-based extracurricular activities improves and encourages school connectedness among students. Overall, the study was aimed at examining what factors predict school connectedness.<p> Data for this study were collected in a survey format from 252 grade 11 and grade 12 students from several rural Saskatchewan schools. A sequential multiple regression was performed to predict school connectedness. After adjusting for various sociodemographic characteristics, two independent variables predicted school connectedness: health-risk behaviours and extracurricular participation. This research was able to show that beyond factors such as age, gender, grade, and participation in health-risk factors, students who reported being involved in extracurricular activity reported higher scores of school connectedness. Extracurricular participation was associated positively with school connectedness, indicating that participating in extracurricular activities increases school connectedness. Health-risk factors were negative predictors of school connectedness. That is, students who reported participating in health-risk behaviours reported lower school connectedness scores. First Nations students report lower school connectedness scores than Caucasian students. The limitations, directions for future research and implications for practice of these findings are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between school connectedness and participation in extracurricular activities. A current gap in the research prevents a complete understanding of the relationship between extracurricular participation and school connectedness; therefore, this study aimed to bridge this gap. It is reasonable to suggest that by simply improving the amount, type, and availability of activities, schools have the potential to help students become more motivated in their role as both a student and a community member. The objective was to provide further support to research implying that increased participation in school-based extracurricular activities improves and encourages school connectedness among students. Overall, the study was aimed at examining what factors predict school connectedness.<p> Data for this study were collected in a survey format from 252 grade 11 and grade 12 students from several rural Saskatchewan schools. A sequential multiple regression was performed to predict school connectedness. After adjusting for various sociodemographic characteristics, two independent variables predicted school connectedness: health-risk behaviours and extracurricular participation. This research was able to show that beyond factors such as age, gender, grade, and participation in health-risk factors, students who reported being involved in extracurricular activity reported higher scores of school connectedness. Extracurricular participation was associated positively with school connectedness, indicating that participating in extracurricular activities increases school connectedness. Health-risk factors were negative predictors of school connectedness. That is, students who reported participating in health-risk behaviours reported lower school connectedness scores. First Nations students report lower school connectedness scores than Caucasian students. The limitations, directions for future research and implications for practice of these findings are discussed.

Class of 2010 Abstract / OBJECTIVES: To determine what competencies students feel they learn the most from work, school and extracurricular experiences. METHODS: Questionnaires were administered during a regularly scheduled, required class for third year pharmacy students. Students rated 30 different competencies they felt they learned the most, intermediate, and least amount from work, school and extracurricular experiences. Data on years of work experience, type of work experience, average weekly hours, age, gender, and level of involvement in professional organizations was also collected. RESULTS: There were 63 students included in this study. Students who had a higher level of participation in extra-curricular activities were found to be significantly younger than those who had lower levels of participation (p = 0.05). Students worked on average 11.5 hours a week and had an average of 3.5 years pharmacy related work experience. More than half (>50%) of the competencies were perceived by the third year students to be learned the most in the classroom setting. The competencies students felt they learned the most in the classroom and work setting were from Domain 1: Patient care and Domain 2: Professionalism and management in health systems. Students characterized 80% of the competencies in Domain 3: Health improvement, wellness, and disease prevention to be most learned through extracurricular activities. CONCLUSIONS: It appears students feel they learn primarily in the classroom setting with similar amounts of competencies gained at work and through extracurricular activities.

There has been a growing discussion in the fields of education and psychology about the relationship between social skill proficiency and academic excellence. However, the presence of extracurricular involvement as promoting both academic and social development has not been thoroughly explored. The most recent literature syntheses and meta-analyses on extracurricular activity participation were conducted in the 1980??s. An updated review and quantitative look at the participation literature is due. The purpose of this study is to integrate participation studies from the 1990s and give summative information as to the impact of extracurricular activity participation on various educational and psycho-social characteristics. Of the 164 identified studies, 41 were included in these meta-analyses. The current analyses produced 6 different activity categories: general extracurricular activity, sports, work and vocational activities, performing arts, pro-social activities, and community-based activities. The current meta-analyses suggest student outcomes were significantly related to general extracurricular activity and pro-social activity participation. General activities and pro-social activities had the most impact on academic achievement, while performing arts and pro-social activities?? participants reported the largest effect on identity and self esteem related outcomes. Sports and related activities (i.e. Cheerleading) were not as strongly linked to academic achievement indicators as anticipated and student workers had more negative outcomes than any other activity participants. In conclusion, the best outcomes for children and adolescents are brought about through well-built, developmentally appropriate structured activities. Moreover, the academic and social profits of extracurricular activities that have been examined in this study can be used to inform program planning and implementation.

Doing and learning science are social activities that require certain language, activities, and values. Both constitute what Gee (2005) calls Discourses. The language of learning science varies with the learning context (Lemke, 2001,1990). Science for All Americans (AAAS, 1990) and Inquiry and the National Science Education Standards (NRC, 2000) endorse inquiry science learning. In the United States, most science learning is teacher-centered; inquiry science learning is rare (NRC, 2000). This study focused on 12 high school students from two suburban high schools, their three faculty mentors, and two engineering mentors during an extracurricular robotics activity with FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC). FRC employed student-centered inquiry focus to teach science principles integrating technology. Research questions were (a) How do science teachers and their students enact Discourses as they teach and learn science? and (b) How does the pedagogical approach of a learning activity facilitate the Discourses that are enacted by students and teachers as they learn and teach science? Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), the study examined participants’ language during robotic activities to determine how language used in learning science shaped the learning and vice versa. Data sources included video-recordings of participant language and semi-structured interviews with study participants. Transcribed recordings were coded initially using Gee’s (2005) linguistic Building Tasks as a priori codes. CDA was applied to code transcripts, to construct Discourses enacted by the participants, and to determine how context facilitated their enactment. Findings indicated that, for the students, FRC facilitated elements of Science Discourse. Wild About Robotics (W.A.R.) team became, through FRC, part of a community similar to scientists’ community that promoted knowledge and sound practices, disseminated information, supported research and development and encouraged interaction of its members. The public school science classroom in the U.S. is inimical to inquiry learning because of practices and policies associated with the epistemological stance that spawned the standards and/or testing movement and No Child Left Behind (Baez & Boyles, 2009). The findings of this study provided concrete ideas to accommodate the recommendations by NRC (1996) and NSES (2000) for creating contexts that might lead to inquiry science learning for meaningful student engagement.

There has been a growing discussion in the fields of education and psychology about the relationship between social skill proficiency and academic excellence. However, the presence of extracurricular involvement as promoting both academic and social development has not been thoroughly explored. The most recent literature syntheses and meta-analyses on extracurricular activity participation were conducted in the 1980??s. An updated review and quantitative look at the participation literature is due. The purpose of this study is to integrate participation studies from the 1990s and give summative information as to the impact of extracurricular activity participation on various educational and psycho-social characteristics. Of the 164 identified studies, 41 were included in these meta-analyses. The current analyses produced 6 different activity categories: general extracurricular activity, sports, work and vocational activities, performing arts, pro-social activities, and community-based activities. The current meta-analyses suggest student outcomes were significantly related to general extracurricular activity and pro-social activity participation. General activities and pro-social activities had the most impact on academic achievement, while performing arts and pro-social activities?? participants reported the largest effect on identity and self esteem related outcomes. Sports and related activities (i.e. Cheerleading) were not as strongly linked to academic achievement indicators as anticipated and student workers had more negative outcomes than any other activity participants. In conclusion, the best outcomes for children and adolescents are brought about through well-built, developmentally appropriate structured activities. Moreover, the academic and social profits of extracurricular activities that have been examined in this study can be used to inform program planning and implementation.

School-based extracurricular activity participation has been linked to positive behavioral and academic outcomes; however, little is known about the participation and outcomes of participation of Hispanic students, a group that is historically at high risk for school failure. As such, extracurricular activity participation characteristics and outcomes of a diverse group of middle school students were examined in this two journal article dissertation. First, participation differences between students based on student racial group membership and student sex were examined. Logistic regression was used to examine participation status differences (yes or no). Analysis of variance was used to examine participation intensity between student groups. Additionally, the effects of participation on outcomes related to adolescent peer groups, belongingness, and school membership were examined. Multiple regression models were utilized for this analysis, and consideration was given to interaction effects that would indicate whether groups of students (i.e. sex and race) benefited differentially from participation. Results indicated that, during the 7th grade, Hispanic students were significantly less likely to participate in sports-related extracurricular activities as compared to their Caucasian peers. However, no group differences in sex or race were found for participation intensity. Furthermore, participation in sports-related extracurricular activities was related to higher feelings of school membership for Hispanic and Black, but not White, students. In addition, participation in sports was related to Black students identifying a higher percentage of their friends as displaying prosocial behavior. Overall, the results suggested that while Hispanic students may have benefited more so than their White peers from participation, they participated at lower levels as a group. This highlights a currently under-tapped potential for intervention.

Organizations such as the Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts of America, church groups, community recreation sports, high school sports, and other youth organizations provide educational, recreational, and social interaction opportunities for many adolescents in the United States. As sociologists we can ask, what kind of impact do they have on participants? The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of participation in one or more of these youth organizations on completing high school. Previous research is lacking in this specific area, though there is research that addresses other positive aspects, and some negative, of these organizations. The hypothesis of this study is that youth who participate in extracurricular activities or youth organizations have a greater likelihood of graduating from high school than those who do not participate in extracurricular activities. The data were taken from the National Longitudinal Survey. A logistical regression was conducted to see if there is an association between participation in these youth organizations and high school graduation. / Master of Science

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