The Importance of Extracurricular Activities for Impoverished Children - Research Paper Example

The Importance of Extracurricular Activities for Impoverished Children In most communities throughout the world, education is one of the most valued elements for the purpose of having a quality life. In addition, most governments have made it mandatory for children to get education to certain levels in their countries. It is for this reason that most parents ensure that their children receive the right quality of education when they become of age. However, despite the emphasis placed on education, it is undeniable that extracurricular complement the roles of education and therefore important for children development. In this regard, the following discussion will delve into the importance of extracurricular activities for impoverished children in the society and my efforts in alleviating the problem of low participation. Impoverishment is one of the major challenges to the education sector in many countries all over the world. Despite the continued efforts by governments and education stakeholders to ensure that every child enjoys the right of education, poverty levels among communities greatly hamper these efforts. According to DoSomething.Org, there are millions of children within impoverished communities hence the effects of poverty on education (1). For this reason, many children from the impoverished communities either end up dropping out of school or having poor quality education. For instance, resent research shows that among the impoverished communities in the U.S, there is only one book for every three hundred children (DoSomething.Org 1). In such cases, the affected children are less motivated to pursue their education to higher levels. In addition, home-based challenges also affect the attitudes of these children towards education. Interestingly, many impoverished communities either have a negative attitude or do not acknowledge the importance of extracurricular activities in education. Community members from low-income groups generally believe that the achievement gaps in the society result from in adequate education among their children (Charles Stewart Mott Foundation 1). As such, parents emphasize that their children should focus entirely on educational activities whenever in school in order to have “better future”. In this case, it is evident that extracurricular activities are seen as a waste of time and has no importance in developing school-going children. In addition, many children from the low income communities are tasked to carryout activities that help to generate some income for the family. Therefore, participation in extracurricular activities would reduce the average family income. Moreover, most extracurricular activities require some financial input, such as the purchase of costumes, something that is challenging for most impoverished families. Extracurricular activities have several benefits to both the students and the communities in question. Complete focus in academics results in production of students, who are not well-rounded up for different community activities. As such, both the community and students loss the benefits of having extracurricular activities incorporated in the education system. According to the Kids Health Organization, participation in extracurricular activities enables students to be well rounded and responsible (1). This is because students are tasked with additional responsibilities and taught how to deal with different aspects of life. Of more importance, extracurricular activities have been shown to have a positive influence on the behavior of school going children. According to Massoni, students participating in extracurricular activities are required to adhere to specific rules guiding the activities hence modeling them to be law abiding citizens in the future. Moreover, such students make good employees in the society because of the demonstrated ability to adhere to basic rules governing different activities. Lastly, students performing excellently in extracurricular activities stand a better chance of obtaining educational scholar scholarships at different educational levels hence supporting low-income communities in educating children. Different educational and non-education stakeholders have undertaken several initiatives to solve this problem. One of the major implementation to motivate children from impoverished communities to engage in extracurricular activities is the provision of adult role models. According to the Educational Partnerships Inc., research has shown that provision of opportunities for students to interact with adult mentors has led to increased participation in extracurricular activities among schools in the impoverished communities (3). In reality, many students get motivated to participate in extracurricular activities after identifying particular activities with a successful adult mentor. On the other hand, different companies have also supported extracurricular activities in various schools and communities through corporate responsibility programs. For instance, the Camp Coca-Cola Foundation, which has helped to develop productive youths in the American communities (American Camping Association, Inc. 1). Because of the increased awareness of the benefits associated with extracurricular activities, many people have cited different methods to help solve the problem. Firstly, community members propose that teachers in respective schools should communicate the importance of extracurricular activities to the parents directly because they can convince the parents on the need of encouraging their children to participate in the activities. According to Educational Partnerships Inc., participation of children from impoverished families is considerably hindered by financial implications and lack of information among the parents (3). Considering that parents always wish educational success for their children, it is highly likely for teachers to convince them of the importance of such activities for their children success. Members of different communities also advocate for increased sources of funds to help reduce the financial barriers among the children from low-income families. In order to alleviate the problem of low extracurricular activity participation by children from low-income families, I have initiated a dancewear drive at my workplace. In this drive, I will encourage the company customers and staff to donate slightly used dancewear/shoes, which form part of the requirements in the dance extracurricular activities. All the collected donations will be directed towards supporting children from impoverished families, which cannot afford the attire needed to participate in dance. In order to achieve this, I will collect documentaries and publications that show the importance of extracurricular activities and statistics of participation from impoverished families in order to inform the customers and company staff of the importance of my drive. In addition, I will also encourage the company management to assist the drive by informing all the employees and customers on an official basis. Finally, I will also follow up the beneficiaries of the drive to ensure they receive full benefits of the drive and encourage them to motivate other children to participate in extracurricular activities. In conclusion, participation in extracurricular activities for school going children has benefits to both the society and the children. It is noteworthy pointing out that participation in these activities is highly compromised among the impoverished communities due to financial constraints. In addition, majority of people from low income communities feel that participation in extracurricular leads to wastage of time and loss of focus in academics, which is not the case. Various efforts by educational and community stakeholders have led to improved participation in extracurricular activities among children from impoverished families. As such, I have initiated a dance wear drive in order to support financially challenged children to participate in dance extracurricular activity. Works Cited American Camping Association, Inc. Camp Coca-Cola: Outcome-Based Programming Changes Lives. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.< http://www.acacamps.org/campmag/0507cocacola >. Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Funding Interests. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.< http://www.mott.org/FundingInterests/programs/pathwaysoutofpoverty/improvingcommunityeducation >. DoSomething.Org. 11 Facts About Education and Poverty in America. Web. 24 Nov. 2014. < https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-education-and-poverty-america >. Educational Partnerships Inc. Extracurricular Activities and Student Achievement: Everyone Gains. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.< http://gearup.ous.edu/sites/default/files/Research-Briefs/ResearchBriefExtracurricularActivities.pdf >. Kids Health Organization. Extracurricular Activities. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.< http://kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/school/involved_school.html >. Massoni, E. “Positive Effects of Extra Curricular Activities on Students” Essai. 9 (2011) : 84-87. Web. 24 Nov. 2014. < http://dc.cod.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1370&context=essai >. Read More