Direct comparisons between residential and community students on school performance measures in a public school setting

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the school performance of residential youth who attended a public school setting. Direct comparisons were made between the residential youth and students in the community on a number of school measures. Results from a multivariate analysis of covariance indicated that the residential students had significantly lower grades, participated in significantly fewer extracurricular activities, and exhibited more problematic behaviors such as tardies and absences. These findings were consistent with previous research which found that many residential youth have a number of behavioral, social, and academic difficulties that interfere with school functioning. A number of recommendations were made regarding educational placement for residential youth.     

Expanding Knowledge of Parental Involvement in Children's Secondary Education: Connections with High School Seniors' Academic Success

This paper analyzes data from the parent and student components of the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 to investigate family educational involvement in secondary education. It examines connections between parental involvement practices and the educational outcomes of high school seniors. Utilizing multiple involvement indicators for the 8th and 12th grades, the study concludes that the nature of relationships between parental involvement and 12th grade educational outcomes depends on the type of parental practices and educational outcomes considered. Parental involvement indicators are not associated with achievement growth between the 8th and 12th grades. However, a number of parental involvement indicators are associated with seniors' enrollment in an academic high school program and with their coursework in core academic subjects. High levels of educational expectations, consistent encouragement, and actions that enhance the learning opportunities of children are the family practices that are positively associated with the above educational experiences of high school seniors. The relationships between parental involvement and educational outcomes exist regardless of students' socioeconomic or race/ethnic background and regardless of whether parental practices are measured in the middle grades or in high school.     

Extracurricular Participation and Course Performance in the Middle Grades: A Study of Low-Income,Urban Youth

The transition to middle/junior high school is associated with declines in students’ academic performance, especially among low‐income, urban youth. Developmental psychologists posit such declines are due to a poor fit between the needs of early adolescents—industry, identity, and autonomy—and the environment of their new schools. Extracurricular participation during these years may act as a buffer for youth, providing a setting for development outside the classroom. The current study examines participation within and across activity settings among low‐income, urban youth in New York City over this transition. Using the Adolescent Pathways Project data, this study explores how such participation relates to course performance. We find that a large percentage of youth are minimally or uninvolved in extracurricular activities during these years; that participation varies within youth across time; and that the association between participation and course performance varies by activity setting. Youth who participate frequently in community or athletic settings or have high participation in two or more settings are found to have higher GPAs in the year in which they participate and youth who participate frequently in the religious setting are found to have lower GPAs. High participation in more than two settings may be detrimental.     

Coaches' expectations and beliefs regarding benefits of youth sport participation

Although many have investigated why children participate in sport, little is known about what adults expect children to gain from participation. The present purpose was to examine coaches' expectations of what children should gain from participation in sport and the extent to which coaches believe that these expectations are actually fulfilled. Participants included 109 youth sport coaches who completed a survey packet consisting of a demographic information questionnaire and the Ohio Sport Satisfaction Index. Analysis indicated coaches ranked the variables of having fun, learning life skills, being part of a team, developing confidence, and the excitement of competition as the most important outcomes for the youth they coach. Generally, coaches believe that their expectations are being fulfilled. Coaches' sex and years of coaching were not significantly related to any of the criterion variables in the present study.     

Promoting Parent Involvement in Schools to Serve At-Risk Students

The recent educational literature and popular media reflect growing concern about deficient student achievement in the regular education system, a problem that has resulted in inappropriate classification of students as handicapped, as well as resulted in increased dropout rates. A wide range of variables contribute to school failure, including a complex interaction of home and school characteristics. For this reason, efforts to intervene with students who are at-risk for school failuer must include attention to the relationship between parents and school professionals. This paper reviews the literature on parent involvement, which shows that increased participation by parents in educational programs has a positive relationship to student achievement. Specific roles for parents are examined, followed by guidelines for promoting parent involvement.     

Using self-determination theory to explain sport persistence and dropout in adolescent athletes

Motivational characteristics are influential in shaping adolescents' desire to persist in sport or to discontinue their sport participation. Self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) was utilized as the theoretical framework for this study. This theory examines whether sustained participatory involvement, defined as continued participation in the sport through the next year, was influenced by individuals' self-determined motivation and by the fulfillment of the three basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Four hundred ninety two soccer players between the ages of 13 and 17 years comprised the sample. Results indicated sport dropout was explained by higher levels of amotivation, external regulation, and introjected regulation and by lower satisfaction of relatedness and autonomy needs. The findings of this study contribute to the knowledge base on sport dropout as they supported many of self-determination theory.     

Sport and Sexuality: Athletic Participation by Sexual Minority and Sexual Majority Adolescents in the U.S.

There are contradictory expectations regarding the relationship between sport and sexuality, one suggesting less sports participation for sexual minority males and more for sexual minority females, with the other hypothesizes no participation differences by sexuality for either males or females. I used the nationally representative Add Health Survey of middle and high school students in the U.S. to assess the degree to which sexual minority and sexual majority boys and girls play sports and the differences in the types of sports that they play. Findings from logistic regression analyses indicated there were very few differences in the degree and type of sports participation by sexuality, but somewhat larger differences as the adolescents move from middle to high school.     

The role of neighborhood ecological assets and activity involvement in youth developmental outcomes: Differential impacts of asset poor and asset rich neighborhoods

Developmental system theories recognize that variables from multiple levels of organization within the bioecology of human development contribute to adolescent development, including individual factors, family factors and the neighborhood which includes extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities provide a context for youth development, and participation has been linked with positive developmental outcomes. This study uses data from a subsample of early adolescents in the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development to determine whether neighborhood assets moderate the effect of adolescent activity involvement on positive and negative developmental outcomes. The relationship between activity involvement and neighborhood assets was different for girls as compared to boys when assessing outcomes of positive youth development, risk behavior, and depression. Consistent with a developmental systems perspective, the findings affirm the need for researchers and practitioners to consider multiple contextual influences when seeking to understand or promote, respectively, positive youth development.     

Exposure to Violence and Socioemotional Adjustment in Low-Income Youth: An Examination of Protective Factors

Using a sample of 391 low-income youth ages 13–17, this study investigated the potential moderating effects of school climate, participation in extracurricular activities, and positive parent–child relations on associations between exposure to violence (i.e., witnessing violence and violent victimization) and adolescent socioemotional adjustment (i.e., internalizing and externalizing problems). Exposure to violence was related to both internalizing and externalizing problems. High levels of participation in extracurricular activities and positive parent–child relations appeared to function as protective factors, weakening the positive association between exposure to violence and externalizing problems. Contrary to prediction, school climate did not moderate associations between exposure to violence and socioemotional adjustment. Further, none of the hypothesized protective factors moderated the association between exposure to violence and internalizing problems.     

Youth sport dropout from the achievement goal theory

This study examined dropout behavior, using the conceptual framework of achievement goal theory. We hypothesized that dropout could be predicted by a high ego-oriented goal disposition in combination with a low perception of personal skill and the perception that the coach and sport peers maintained ego-oriented sport success criteria. The participants were 134 adolescent athletes involved in high-level competitive sports participation. The results of structural equation modeling (SEM) supported these hypotheses. Furthermore, the variables that directly predicted sport dropout were the participant's ego orientation (positively) and perception of skill (negatively). These findings and the research prospects are discussed.     

Associations Between Sport Participation,Goal and Sportspersonship Orientations,and Moral Reasoning

This study examined associations between level of sport participation, goal and sportspersonship orientations, and moral reasoning in sport and nonsport situations and orientation by sport participation interactions. Participants were individuals with elite (n = 176), high school (n = 183), and youth sport (n = 78) participation. When judging sport situations, individuals who participated in elite sports demonstrated poorer moral reasoning than those who participated in high school and youth sports. At low levels of sportspersonship, individuals who participated in youth sports demonstrated higher moral reasoning than those who participated in high school and elite sports. When judging nonsport situations, moral reasoning was positively related to positive sportspersonship and negatively related to ego orientation but did not differ by sport participation. Within sport, sport participation and goal and sportspersonship orientations play a critical role in moral reasoning. However, these orientations may be more important than sport participation in moral reasoning beyond the sport context.     

Academic and Extracurricular Predictors of Peer Victimization: Evidence of Similarities Across Diverse Racial and Ethnic Categories

Scholars of aggression in educational settings have long been interested in studying sanctions against academic achievement. Though many studies focus on minority students’ experiences, research has not tested the relationship between academic success and peer victimization within individual groups of students that are representative of the United States’ racial and ethnic diversity. The same can be said of studies of extracurricular activities and peer victimization, despite the academic involvement and enrichment those activities entail. This study examines how academic success and extracurricular activities impact the risk of being victimized by peers through verbal, physical, and other bullying-related incidents. Further, this relationship is compared across four racial/ethnic categories (Asian, Black, Hispanic, White). The study analyzes data from the most recent racially diverse and nationally representative education data set (the 2002 Education Longitudinal Study) to do so. Multilevel regression analyses indicate that participation in academic extracurricular activities and academic effort put students at increased risks for victimization. White students’ victimization helps to account for these relationships. The findings not only provide evidence of stigma against academically enriching activities, but also provide additional evidence against the assumption that only marginalized minority groups are stigmatized for academic effort and involvement.     

Exploring perceptions about the feasibility of educational video resources as a strategy to support parental involvement in youth soccer

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to explore parents’ and coaches’ perceptions about educational video resources to support parents’ involvement in youth soccer.DesignUsing an instrumental, qualitative case study design, 21 parents and coaches were recruited to participate in an individual interview. All participants were involved in one of the developmental stages of youth sport participation (sampling, specialising or investment years) in soccer in South Australia. Elicitation tools were used in the individual interviews in the form of educational video resources designed for parents involved in youth soccer to prompt dialogue. All interview data was analysed thematically.ResultsThree main themes were developed from the thematic analysis, including ‘Importance of targeted curriculum’, ‘Integrated delivery model’ and ‘Strategies to maximise impact’ of video-based parent education. Overall, parents and coaches perceive educational video resources as a promising addition to broader strategies aimed at enhancing parental involvement in youth soccer.ConclusionsThe findings highlight parents’ and coaches’ perceptions about the potential utility of educational video resources as a tool to communicate, support and educate parents involved in youth soccer. However, the findings also highlight the need to consider how such an approach can be optimised, tailored, and supported within a broader intervention strategy.     

家长参与在家庭社会经济地位和高中生学习品质之间的中介作用——师生关系的调节作用

为了考察在中国背景下,家长参与在家庭社会经济地位与高中生学习品质之间的中介作用,以及师生关系对上述中介效应的调节。以东部某省13442名高中二年级学生为被试,采用家长的受教育程度、家长的职业以及家庭拥有物三个指标测量家庭社会经济地位。采用家长参与子女学习和家长参与子女日常生活两个指标测试家长参与度。采用学习兴趣、学习自信心、学习策略、自主学习能力、学习习惯五个分指标测量学生的学习品质。采用师生关系量表测量师生关系。结果表明：（1）家庭社会经济地位可以正向显著预测高中生的学习品质;（2）家长参与在家庭社会经济地位与高中生学习品质之间起完全中介作用;（3）家庭社会经济地位经由家长参与影响高中生学习品质的中介作用受到师生关系的调节;（4）因家庭社会经济地位不同造成的学生学习品质的差异,在一定程度上会受到师生关系的弥补作用。     

家长参与在家庭社会经济地位和高中生学习品质之间的中介作用——师生关系的调节作用

为了考察在中国背景下,家长参与在家庭社会经济地位与高中生学习品质之间的中介作用,以及师生关系对上述中介效应的调节。以东部某省13442名高中二年级学生为被试,采用家长的受教育程度、家长的职业以及家庭拥有物三个指标测量家庭社会经济地位。采用家长参与子女学习和家长参与子女日常生活两个指标测试家长参与度。采用学习兴趣、学习自信心、学习策略、自主学习能力、学习习惯五个分指标测量学生的学习品质。采用师生关系量表测量师生关系。结果表明：（1）家庭社会经济地位可以正向显著预测高中生的学习品质;（2）家长参与在家庭社会经济地位与高中生学习品质之间起完全中介作用;（3）家庭社会经济地位经由家长参与影响高中生学习品质的中介作用受到师生关系的调节;（4）因家庭社会经济地位不同造成的学生学习品质的差异,在一定程度上会受到师生关系的弥补作用。     

The role of individual and parental expectations in student-athletes’ career adaptability profiles

ObjectivesTo support holistic development, adolescent student-athletes are encouraged to integrate sport with education/academics (i.e., dual careers). Career adaptability, as a psychological resource, may help youth athletes cope with transitions and successfully manage their careers. Individuals with a plan and higher expectations for the future demonstrate higher career adaptability and are better prepared for the future. In the present study, we examined what kinds of distinct career adaptability profiles could be identified among youth athletes in Finland at the transition stage to a sports high school (i.e., specialized school for athletes). Moreover, we investigated whether youth athletes’ success expectations about school and sport, and corresponding parental expectations, predicted the probability of student-athletes demonstrating a certain career adaptability profile. Next, we examined how gender was represented in the different profiles. Design and methods: The present study is part of the Longitudinal Finnish Dual Career study. A total of 391 student-athletes (51% females) from six sports high schools in Finland, and 448 parents (42% fathers) participated in the study. The student-athletes answered questionnaires on career adaptability (Career Adapt-Abilities Scale – Dual Career Form) and success expectations at the beginning and then again at the end of the first year of sports high school. At the beginning of sports high school, parents responded to a questionnaire about their expectations of success for their children in both academics and in sport. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and latent profile analysis. Results: Five distinct adaptability profiles across time were identified: stable, very low adaptability, stable low adaptability, stable moderate adaptability, stable high adaptability, and increased adaptability. Student-athletes’ high success expectations in academics and sport, and mothers’ high success expectations in academics, increased the probability of student-athletes showing higher adaptability profiles. Conclusions: The student-athletes’ high level of expectations for both sport and academics are associated with career adaptability, and mothers’ high expectations of student-athletes’ academic success relate to higher career adaptability profiles among student-athletes and can thus be considered an important factor in supporting their dual careers.     

Effects of Extracurricular Participation on the Internalizing Problems and Intrapersonal Strengths of Youth in a System of Care

Although extracurricular participation has been linked to positive youth outcomes in the general population, no research to date has examined benefits for youth diagnosed with mental health challenges. Youth in systems of care (SOCs) receive a variety of services and supports that could help them capitalize on this potential for positive development, such as access to flexible funding to support recreational interests. However, research has not examined the degree to which the increased community involvement (e.g., extracurricular participation) sought in SOCs contributes to improved outcomes. This study addresses these gaps by investigating the relationships between both average and increased extracurricular participation frequency and breadth and internalizing problems and intrapersonal strengths among SOC youth. Findings revealed that, on average, higher frequency of youth participation was associated with higher intrapersonal strengths and lower internalizing problems. Increases in participation frequency were also associated with increased strengths and decreased internalizing problems. These findings suggest that efforts to implement supports for increasing extracurricular participation of SOC youth could improve their psychosocial outcomes beyond the benefits yielded via formal services. Taken together, these results provide support for advocacy efforts to integrate youth with mental health challenges into existing extracurriculars and to create new extracurricular opportunities.     

Great expectations: students’ educational attitudes upon the transition to post-secondary vocational education

In this study, we examine students’ educational attitudes upon the transition to Dutch senior vocational education (SVE), a transition associated with high dropout rates in the first year. Prior studies have identified differences in educational attitudes between sociodemographic groups. However, the mechanisms underlying those differences remain topic of debate: some studies point at differences in the school orientation and support in students’ social communities outside school, others focus on differences in educational experiences between sociodemographic groups. Multilevel sequential regression analyses on a diverse sample of 1438 students in urban SVE schools reveal that students have very positive educational attitudes upon their transition to SVE. Ethnic minority students express particularly positive attitudes. School-related encouragement and support at home plays an important role in students’ attitudes, but the attitudes of students from lower educated or ethnic minority communities are less related to this support. Prior school experiences play an essential, but occasionally counterproductive, role in students’ attitudes upon transition, depicting the transition as a fresh new start for some, and an unwelcome threshold for others.     

Extracurricular involvement among affluent youth: a scapegoat for "ubiquitous achievement pressures"?

It has been suggested that over-scheduling of upper-class youth might underlie the high distress and substance use documented among them. This assumption was tested by considering suburban 8th graders' involvement in different activities along with their perceptions of parental attitudes toward achievement. Results indicated negligible evidence for deleterious effects of high extracurricular involvement per se. Far more strongly implicated was perceived parent criticism for both girls and boys as well as the absence of after-school supervision. Low parent expectations connoted significant vulnerability especially for boys. The findings indicate that at least among early adolescents, converging scientific and media reports may have scapegoated extracurricular involvements, to some degree, as an index of ubiquitous achievement pressures in affluent communities.     

Suicide Prevention in an Educational Context: Broad and Narrow Foci

This paper reviews the needs and conceptual bases of school-based youth suicide prevention programs, summarizes their current status, and recommends objectives, processes, and evaluation strategies for focused educational programs in this area. In addition, a broad systemic approach is called for that reorganizes the school context to increase students' contributions to and involvement with the educational process. Such approaches appear to have been effective with a variety of youth deviant behaviors such as dropout and delinquency, and seem to be particularly appropriate to suicidal behavior that is characterized by alienation and withdrawal from social supports. A combination of these broad and narrow foci may be necessary to address suicidal behavior in the educational context.