Effects of Secondary Extracurricular Activities on College Freshmen Academic Success

Effects of Secondary Extracurricular Activities on College Freshmen Academic Success
A Proposal Presented to the Graduate Faculty of Troy University
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for EDU 6691
Dia B. Baugh
Troy University
Chapter I
Introduction
Statement of the problem
Many students are encouraged to participate in a variety of extracurricular activities in high school in order to present themselves as a well-rounded person. They are told that universities are more likely to accept them and give them scholarship money if they pack their resumes. So, many students participate in activities outside of the classroom in which they may or may not have otherwise chosen to participate. The National Center for Education Statistics (2005) says that 15.3% of all seniors participate in academic clubs, 38.6% participate in athletics, and 25.3% participate in music, drama, or debate. Most students buy into this idea, but end up receiving most of my scholarships based on ACT scores, not the number of clubs they are a members of in high school. Logically, universities want to accept and give scholarship money to students who show the greatest probability of succeeding academically. This study will look to see if participating in more extracurricular activities in high school leads to academic success as a college freshmen.
Purpose of the study
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the number and types of high school extracurricular activities and the academic success of college freshmen, as shown by their grade point averages (GPAs).
Significance of the study
The study will be of value to high school students wishing to attend college and to post-secondary institutions wishing to give scholarship money to well-deserving individuals. The results of this study will show college admissions personnel if students who participate in a wide variety of extracurricular activities in high school are more likely to succeed their first year of college. These findings will also help college scholarship boards decide which candidates are most deserving of scholarships. The findings may aid high school students in deciding whether to broaden their experiences with many different activities or to focus on just a few activities.
Definition of terms
Extracurricular: activities students participate in outside of the classroom that are associated with the school; these may include sports, music, academic clubs, or service organizations.
Leisure activities: extracurricular activities in addition to other activities students may participate in outside of the school; such as volunteering, religious activities, and community service.
GPA (grade point average): the calculation of the average of the grades from all classes taken; usually on a 4.0 scale
Interscholastic athletics: sports competitions that take place between teams that are not from the same school.
Limitations and delimitations of the study
This study will be limited to college freshmen studying at public universities in the state of Alabama. All college freshmen will be asked to complete a survey and a random sample of the surveys will be used to collect data.
Hypothesis
The data will show a negative correlation between the number of extracurricular activities in which students participate in high school and the students’ freshmen GPA.

Chapter II
Review of the Literature
Darling said, “School-based extracurricular activities provide adolescents with a highly structured leisure environment, in which adolescents can exert control and express their identity through choice of activity and actions within the setting, but which do not normally facilitate experimentation with roles and activities that are not sanctioned by adults.” Other reviews of the literature about adolescent leisure activities reveal a few key concepts towards this study. The focus of much research about these activities is the effects on high school students. Many of these studies focus on athletics. This review will look at the effects of athletics, extracurricular, and other leisure activities on academics, adolescent development, and young adult success.
Athletics
Many researchers focus on athletics when studying the effects extracurricular activities. This may be due to the amount of attention athletics receive from the public, the amount of money it pulls in for schools, or the popularity athletes receive in high school, college, and as professionals. While it is not wise to assume that the effects of athletics can be generalized to all extracurricular activities, the amount of research does necessitate some attention.
The results of a longitudinal study by Marsh and Kleitman in 2003 show students who have higher levels of participation in athletics have higher grades, self-esteem, and educational aspirations. This study also suggests that the benefits may extend after high school to include a higher university enrollment and completion of degrees compared to those who participated less in athletics. Another study specifies that participating in interscholastic athletics can increase grades in math and English. This study goes on to report that athletes show greater self-esteem and spend more time on homework. The benefits also include more social issues, such as a greater connection between parents, schools and students. According to the researcher, “This supports the idea that participating in sports builds character and that in turn supports academic achievement.” The study also suggests that other extracurricular activities, such as music, may have some of the same benefits but not to the extent of athletics (Broh, 2002).
Athletics may offer more than good grades. A study in Los Angeles, California found, with ethnic and poverty taken into account, schools that offered more sports had lower rates of teen arrests and teen births. The study also found the number of sports activities offered does not affect the number of sexually transmitted diseases (Cohen, Taylor, Zonta, et al, 2007). Other effects of all extracurricular activities, including athletics, will be discussed later in this review.
Other Activities
Darling’s study found that students who participated in any type of extracurricular activity had higher grades and a more positive attitude toward school. Because this was a three-year longitudinal study, the researcher was also able to look at students who did not participate in these activities every year. The report showed the students had higher grades, better attitudes, and higher aspirations the years that they did participate (2005).
The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) reports that adolescents who participate specifically in volunteer work or student government also have higher grades, and they are more likely to attend and graduate from college. An interesting finding by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation is that “having too many activities is detrimental to students and creates stress, but that participation in a proper amount of after-school groups is generally healthy, lowering the risk of depression and improving the sense of accomplishment.” (Cocurricular Activities Raise Grades, Achievement, (2008). The US Census Bureau’s Survey of Income Participation says, “Participating in extracurricular activities is linked to better performance in school.” The study investigated the percentage of 12- to 17-year-olds who were in their expected grade level. About 75 percent of those engaged in some type of extracurricular program were in their expected grade, compared to sixty percent of those who did not participate. The study was hesitant to claim a causal relationship because they also found that children living with two parents or in higher income homes were more likely to participate in these activities (Keeping Busy, 2001). According to Mahoney and Cairns drop out levels are also affected by students’ participation in school activities outside of the classroom. Results of this study “indicate that engagement in school extracurricular activities is linked to decreasing rates of early school dropout in both boys and girls.” This is thought to come from the students having positive connections to the school through extracurricular activities (1997).
Olsen reports the findings of Whitworth University music professor Richard Strauch. He has found that students who quit music programs in high school in order to participate in a greater variety of extracurricular and leisure activities had lower college GPAs than students who stayed with a music program throughout high school and into college. There is no known reason for this small fact from a private university, but it does offer high school music teachers with an argument for students who want to quit music to make their resumes looks heavier. Strauch says, “…The research does refute the myth that to be successful in college means you probably have to give up music" (2009).
Personal Development and Success
Of course there are factors other than grades that determine success for high school and college students. Many students, parents, teachers, and members of the community are concerned with areas of social and civic development. Extracurricular activities have shown to aid in these areas as well.
In a qualitative study performed in the Midwest, researchers questioned 10 focus groups of students about the benefits they received from participating in different extracurricular and adult sponsored leisure activities. The researchers then found similar themes in the responses. The students said that activities encouraged them to try new things and learn their strengths and weaknesses; to set realistic goals; to manage time; to control emotions, such as anger and anxiety; to form relationships with people outside of their usual groups; to develop understanding towards others; and to accept and give constructive criticism. They also admitted to developing discipline, teamwork, leadership, responsibility, loyalty, and communication skills. The students also began to realize their place in a greater society by noting how that society works and by experiencing support from adults in the community (Dworkin, Larson, Hansen, 2003).
A study was conducted to observe the impact student demographics had on which leisure activities teenagers chose. African American students with parental support and friends’ approval participated in extracurricular activities offered by the school. Students who participated in clubs not associated with the school were characterized by feelings of peer pressure, high academic achievement, and parental support. Students whose parents were married, had a high socioeconomic status, monitored their children were more likely to participate if volunteer activities in upper level grades. Females with friend and parent support were more likely to participate in religious activities (Huebner and Mancini, 2003).
Transitioning to Young Adults
As this study is concerned with the long-term effects of high school extracurricular activities, the most beneficial studies to observe are those in which researchers have begun to investigate these effects. Participation in extracurricular activities showed a significant impact on the amount of education a student received by age twenty. Researchers note, “The consistency of extracurricular activity participation in both early and middle adolescence showed positive, significant links to interpersonal competence in middle adolescence, educational aspirations in late adolescence, and educational status at age twenty” (Mahoney, Cairns, and Farmer, 2003).
When 22 sophomore students were interviewed to determine their definition of success in college and what it took to be successful in college, several themes became apparent. These themes associated with the meaning of success in college were grades, though the students were not able to determine a definition of a “good” grade; social integration; and independence with regard to the college environment. The students agreed that success in college required strategies much different from those used in high school. The strategies students suggested combined social and academic aspects and included, “attending class regularly, taking classes with friends, sharing class notes, participating in study groups, reading before class, and meeting with professors or teaching assistants” (Yazedijan, Toews, Sevin, et al, 2008).
Summary
Studies seem to agree that extracurricular activities have positive effects on teenagers. These include higher grades, positive self-esteem, and positive associations with the school. They also seem to buffer adolescents from undesirable behaviors that can lead to arrests, teen pregnancies, and high school dropouts. Although students have a broad definition of success in college, high school extracurricular activities do seem to have a positive impact on this as well.


Chapter III
Methodology
A quantitative study will test the correlation between the number of extracurricular activities in which students participated in high school and the students’ freshmen grade point averages. Students will be asked to complete questionnaires with Likert scales as entering freshmen about the number and types of extracurricular and leisure activities of which they were part. Their GPAs will be collected at the end of the freshmen year.
Research questions
The researcher will consider the following questions:
1. Is there a correlation between high school athletic participation and college freshmen GPA?
2. Is there a correlation between high school extracurricular participation (other than athletics) and college freshmen GPA?
3. Is there a correlation between adult-led activity outside of school (e.g. youth groups or volunteering) participation and freshmen college GPA?
4. What is the overall correlation between adolescent leisure activities and college freshmen GPA?
5. Can number or type of adolescent leisure activities predict college freshmen academic success?
Populations
The study will include college freshmen attending public universities in the state of Alabama. Gender, race and socioeconomic status will vary among the student population of these universities. These factors will be noted, but they will not be part of the results because the main focus of the study will be leisure activity.
Data collections
The approximately 40,000 freshmen entering Alabama public universities will complete surveys to collect information about the types of leisure activities in which they participated in high school (Alabama Commission on Higher Education). These will be sorted into four groups: students who did not participate in any organized leisure activities, students who participated in one or two activities, students who participated in three or four activities and students who participated in five or more activities. They will also be sorted by participation in different types of activities: athletics, extracurricular (non-athletics), and activities not associated with the school.
Instrumentation
Predictive Analysis Software in the SPSS program (Statistical Program for Social Sciences) will be used to organize data, and analyze trends in data. Pearson’s r will be used to see if there is a correlation between the variables.
Data Analysis
The Probability of significance or p-value will be examined. If p < .05 then the null hypothesis will be rejected. If p > .05 then the null hypothesis will be accepted.
Ethical treatment of human subjects
All humans will be treated with respect and confidentiality. The researcher will explain all aspects of the study to students. Students will give permission for the researcher to access their grade point averages at the end of the freshmen year. The students’ identity will be needed for the researcher to obtain GPAs, but they students will not be identified in the results.

References
Alabama Commission on Higher Education. Retention Report of 1st Time Degree-Seeking Freshmen Students Returning for a Second Year. Retrieved from http://www.ache.alabama.gov/Abstract0809/Student%20Database/Retention%20Report%201.pdf.
Broh, B. A. (2002). Linking extracurricular programming to academic achievement: Who benefits and why? Sociology of Education, 75, 69-91. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Cohen, D., Taylor, S., Zonta, M., Vestal, K. & Schuster, M. (2007). Availability of high school extracurricular sports programs and high-risk behaviors. The Journal of School Health, 77(2), 80-6. Retrieved June 5, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Cocurricular activities raise grades, achievement. (2008). Leadership for Student Activities. 37(4), 40. Retrieved July 8, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Darling, N. (2005). Participation in extracurricular activities and adolescent adjustment: Cross-sectional and longitudinal findings. Journal of Youth and Adolesence, 34(5), 493-505. Retrieved July 8, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Dworkin, J. B., Larson. R., & Hansen, D. (2003). Adolescents' accounts of growth experiences in youth activities. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32, 17-26. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Huebner, A., & Mancini, J. (2003). Shaping structured out-of-school time use among youth: The effects of self, family, and friend systems. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32, 453-463. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Keeping busy. (2001) Education Week. 20(26), 5. Retrieved July 8, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Marsh, H., & Kleitman, S. (2003). School athletic participation: Mostly gain with little pain. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 25, 205-229. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Mahoney, J. L., Cairns, B. D., & Farmer, T. W. (2003). Promoting interpersonal competence and educational success through extracurricular activity participation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 409-418. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Mahoney, J. L., & Cairns, R. B. (1997). Do extracurricular activities protect against early school dropout? Developmental Psychology, 33, 241-253. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Indicator 34: Extracurricular activities. (2005). National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/youthindicators /XLS/34_ExtracurricularActivities.xls
Olson, C. A. (2009). Music and academic success go together at Whitworth. Teaching Music, 16(6), 20. Retrieved June 5, 2009, from ProQuest database.
Yazedjian, A., Toews, M. L., Sevin, T. & Purswell K. E. (2008) It's a whole new world: A qualitative exploration of college students’ definitions of and strategies for college success. Journal of College Student Development, 49(2), 141-154. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from ProQuest database.