ERIC Number: EJ1477888
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Jan
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: EISSN-2544-7831
Available Date: 2025-07-16
Understanding the Factors Influencing the Number of Extracurricular Clubs in American High Schools
Amy Tang1; Yang Wang2; Chunqiang Tang3
Open Education Studies, v7 n1 Article 20250093 2025
Previous research has provided compelling evidence of a strong connection between extracurricular activities and positive youth development. While both school offerings and student participation affect the outcomes of extracurricular activities, earlier studies have primarily focused on student participation. In contrast, this study shifts the focus to school offerings. We extensively collect lists of extracurricular clubs offered by hundreds of American high schools and analyze the relationship between schools' club counts and various factors, such as school enrollment, household income, pupil-to-teacher ratio, and racial demographics. We find that, although the relationship exhibits complex higher-order effects and nonlinearity, it can still be effectively captured by our carefully constructed predictive model. Moreover, we find that, despite the significant influence of school demographics, schools still have ample opportunities to take the initiative to improve their club offerings.
Descriptors: Extracurricular Activities, Clubs, High Schools, Institutional Characteristics, Enrollment, Family Income, Teacher Student Ratio, Racial Differences, School Size, Socioeconomic Status, Public Schools, Race
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Lynbrook High School, San Jose, United States; 2Department of Computer Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University, Ohio, United States; 3Meta platforms, San Jose, United States