Extracurricular activities are
activities performed by
students that fall outside the realm of the normal
curriculum of school or university
education. Extracurricular activities exist at all levels of
education, from 4th-6th,
junior
high/
middle school,
high school,
college and
university education. On average, in the
United States, many students participate in a minimum of one
extracurricular activity throughout the course of one school
year.
Such activities are generally
voluntary as
opposed to mandatory, non-paying, tend to be
Athletics,
social, and
philanthropic as opposed to scholastic, and
involve others of the same age. Students often organize and direct
these activities under
faculty
sponsorship; although student-led initiatives - such as independent
newspapers - are common.
Historical background
The extracurriculum made its first appearance in American colleges
in the nineteenth century. It complemented the curriculum as much
as subverted it. The students found in it a kind of laboratory for
practical and vocational interests.
The first extracurricular activities were
student literary societies (which had roots in the previous century
at Harvard
and Yale
), debate clubs, and by mid-century, Greek letter
fraternities and
sororities. Students also initiated and organized the
early athletic programs on American college campuses. Literary
societies were on the decline by the turn of the twentieth century,
and some educators felt that less desirable extracurricular
activities were now distracting students from their curricular
responsibilities. Intercollegiate athletics soon became the
dominant element in the extracurriculum in most American colleges
and high schools.
Such activities as school
newspaper and
interschool sports programs have been part of American high schools
since the
World War I era. Today’s
public high schools offer a comprehensive array of extracurricular
activities to complement the curriculum.
Extracurricular activities should not be confused with
co-curricular activities such as band and choir.
Co-curricular activities do have some aspects
that are outside the normal school day but are mainly curricular
activities that happen during normal class time.
Companies seeking job applicants may not look solely for those with
a high
GPA; employers might also look at
extracurricular activities to determine if the applicant is the
best suited for the job.
Examples
See also
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