Participation in High School Extracurricular Activities: Investigating School Effects

In: Social science quarterly, Band 80, Heft 2, S. 291-309

Abstract

Examines how the school affects student participation in high school extracurricular activities, using the High School and Beyond database (subsample N = 5,772 students from 281 public schools) and analyzing school structural and contextual effects on student participation in extracurricular activities generally and in athletics specifically, using hierarchical linear modeling procedures. Findings indicate that a complex set of structural factors (size and pupil:teacher ratio) and contextual characteristics (general school climate, mean socioeconomic status of the student body, and % of students from single-parent households) impinge on student participation. Further, there are subtle differences between school attributes that affect involvement in general and vs athletic participation. School structure and context are significant determinants of student participation in extracurricular activities, effectively altering student access to sources of human, cultural, and social capital. 2 Tables, 51 References. Adapted from the source document.