Extracurricular Participation and the Transition to Middle School

Abstract

Research demonstrates a host of negative student outcomes associated with the transition to middle school. As school personnel seek to connect students to the new school, extracurricular participation, in particular, has the potential to influence student belonging and promote positive academic and psychosocial outcomes. Data from this investigation reveals that participation in multiple extracurricular activities relates to academic achievement and school connectedness. Implications for transition and extracurricular programming are included.