Athletics and the Classroom: The Effect of Participation in School-Sponsored Sports on Academic Achievement and Perception of Classroom Work Habits
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Date
2016-05-12
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Masters of Education
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Collection may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. To obtain information or permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Goucher Special Collections & Archives at 410-337-6347 or email archives@goucher.edu.
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to determine whether participation in school-sponsored sports
was related to academic achievement, classroom work habits and students’ perceptions related to
their courses and achievement. A survey was completed by 126 high school students whose
second marking period grade point averages were accessed from school records. The
investigator, a high school teacher and coach, compared self-report data regarding students’
decisions to play or not play a winter sport, athletes’ beliefs about whether their participation in
sports affected their academic achievement, and all students’ perceptions of their classroom work
habits and academic choices. The results indicated that student athletes’ mean grade point
average was statistically significantly higher than that of the non-athletes. Student athletes also
rated some of their classroom work habits as more diligent or rigorous than did non-athletes on
average. Future research might inquire further about the motivations of student athletes in terms
of course selection and work habits and how these further affect their options to participate in
other activities, and how such participation affects their course selection and work habits.