Perceptions of Preservice Teachers about Participation in Extracurricular Activities: Effects of Simulated and Real Experience

Abstract

This article investigated how a component of a computerized simulation (Extracurricular Activities) could influence the behavior of early childhood preservice teachers before and after they were involved in four weeks of field experience. Statistical measures applied to analyze the data were Somers'd, Gamma, correlation and regression analyses, with significant differences as follow: Somers'd (d = .322, p < .08); Gamma (.450, p < .08); Pearson's R (.466, p < .02); Spearman (.379, p < .08); Regression (b = .485, p < .02). Regression model explains 21.7% of overall variation in the dependent variable (R² = .217). Results indicate that preservice early childhood teachers tend to rate the effectiveness of the simulation higher after the field experience than before it. Qualitative analysis explored subjects' participation in extracurricular activities before and after field experience, and their related explanations along with thematic descriptions.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Haensly

P. A.

Lupkowski

A. E.

Edlind

E. P.

The Role of Extracurricular Activities in Education, The High School Journal, 70, pp. 110–119, 1986

Mahoney

J. L.

Cairns

R. B.

Do Extracurricular Activities Protect Against Early School Dropout?

Developmental Psychology, 33:2, pp. 241–253, 1997

Brown

B. B.

Theobald

Learning Contexts Beyond the Classroom: Extracurricular Activities, Community Organizations, and Peer Groups, Yearbook (National Society for the Study of Education), 97:1, pp. 109–141, 1998

Stevenson

H. W.

Extracurricular Programs in East Asian Schools, Teachers College Record, 95:3, pp. 389–407, 1994

Gholson

R. E.

Buser

R. L.

Cocurricular Activity Programs in Secondary Schools, National Association of Secondary School Principals, Reston, Virginia, ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. 245 301, 1983

Gerber

S. B.

Extracurricular Activities and Academic Achievement, Journal of Research and Development in Education, 30:1, pp. 42–50, 1996

Fitch

R. T.

The Interpersonal Values of Students at Differing Levels of Extracurricular Involvement, Journal of College Student Development, 32, pp. 24–32, 1991

Otto

L. B.

Extracurricular Activities in the Educational Attainment Process, Rural Sociology, 40, pp. 162–176, 1975

Thornburg

H. D.

Development in Adolescence, Brooks/Cole, Monterrey, California, 1982

10.

Marsh

H. W.

Extracurricular Activities: Beneficial Extension of the Traditional Curriculum or Subversion of Academic Goals?

Journal of Educational Psychology, 84:4, pp. 553–562, 1992

11.

Winter

McClelland

D. C.

Stewart

A. J.

A New Case for the Liberal Arts: Assessing Institutional Goals and Student Development, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, California, 1981

12.

Astin

A. W.

Student Involvement: A Developmental Theory for Higher Education, Journal of College Student Personnel, 25, pp. 297–308, 1984

13.

Williams

Winston

R. B.

Jr.

Participation in Organized Student Activities and Work: Differences in Developmental Task Achievement of Traditional Aged College Students, NASPA Journal, 22:3, pp. 52–59, 1985

14.

Zola

Ioannidou

Learning and Teaching with Interactive Simulations, Social Education, 64:3, pp. 142–145, 2000

15.

Cadotte

E. R.

Business Simulations: The Next Step in Management Training, Selections; Santa Monica, 12:1, pp. 8–18, 1995

16.

Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, PLATO (trademark of Control Data Corp.) and NovaNET Systems Service mark of University of Illinois Communications, Inc., 1990

17.

Davis

O. L.

Jr.

“No Pass, No Play”, and No Research: A Look Into a Bare Cupboard

Journal of Curriculum and Supervision, 11:2, pp. 107–109, 1996