At-risk students' academic performance indicators and extracurricular participation

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine what, if any, associations exist between at-risk students' academic indicators and participation (or nonparticipation) in a school sanctioned extracurricular activity. The subjects from the study were drawn from three high schools in Missouri. The study included all students who were enrolled in the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program in each respective school. The researcher collected data on these students' attendance rates and grade point averages. The participants were divided into four categories. The first were at-risk students who participated solely in an athletic activity (e.g. baseball, football, and track). The second group consisted of at-risk students who only participated in a nonathletic activity (e.g. drama, speech and debate, FFA). The third group included at-risk students who participated in both an athletic and non-athletic activity. The fourth group was comprised of at-risk students who did not participate in any extracurricular activity. The researcher then compared each group to determine if a significant difference existed between the academic indicators between each of the groups. Analysis determined that at-risk students who participated in some form of activity have significantly better academic performance indicators than students who did not participate. In addition, there was a significant difference in the academic performance indicators of dual participants when compared to the other three groups.