Out-of-hours pursuits can play a significant role in shaping a pupil's future. They deserve pride of place in a school's offer.
In 2014, the then-secretary of state for education, Michael Gove gave a speech in which he pointed out that schools that excelled academically had a programme of extra-curricular activities.
In his view, these activities would give children the opportunity to discover talents they never knew they had. If schools are to be ‘ambitious for every child’, they shouldn’t keep clubs and sports off the menu.
However, the number of extra-curricular activities will naturally depend on the willingness of staff to afford and run them. A Google search will reveal that fee-paying schools are more likely to have a comprehensive menu of activities, an imbalance Gove recognised in his speech.
True enough, extra-curricular activities can be a financial uncertainty: persuading young people to participate, and getting parents on board, will sometimes be more than half the battle.
So, are they actually worth it?
Expedition charity World Challenge has suggested that extra-curricular activities should make up 30 per cent of a university applicant’s personal statement.
Naturally, academic results are the cornerstone of a successful application, but universities are always looking for extra-curricular activities that dovetail with the desired course and demonstrate important ‘soft skills’, such as teamwork and communication.
In the process of learning to play the violin or play cricket, children are learning to think for themselves and recognise their own strengths (Lareau, 2003). Extra-curricular activities are also important for embedding a valuable set of white-collar work skills, including how to:
Massoni identified that pupils who participated in extra-curricular activities were generally less likely to have problems with their behaviour, more likely to have a positive view of their school and less likely to drop out.
The white paper, Higher Standards, Better Schools For All acknowledged that children need to have a rich and exciting range of out-of-hours opportunities in order to allow them to follow their interests and broaden their horizons.
If proof be needed, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has pointed out that young people who participate in positive activities at age 14 tend to have higher test scores at key stages 3 and 4, and are significantly less likely to be NEET at age 17, than young people who do not participate in any activities.
Extra-curricular activities can also benefit community cohesion: at coding club or the school newspaper, a pupil has the chance to interact with peers outside of their own ethnic group.
The possibilities are endless. Activities can be:
One group of young people in our local community organised fundraising events, including a performance of Sister Act, so they could spend their summer holidays helping orphans in Uganda.
Pupils’ achievements, and the extent of their involvement, is much more important than the activity itself. It only matters that pupils enjoy what they do, and learn something from it.
Extra-curricular activities are described as such for reason: offering more of what takes place during the school day, when teachers deliver and pupils passively receive.
I began my career in education as a youth worker, and it taught me some things I’ve carried ever since. Principally, that learning is a process, not a product. We teach young people so that they may grow as creators, not mere consumers.
Gove may have been right after all: it should be by virtue of our ambition, as well as that of our pupils, that extracurricular activities are kept squarely on the playing field.
Lareau, A., Unequal Childhood. (London, 2003).