Last school year, over 92 percent of students at my school participated in extracurricular clubs and activities.

After being surveyed, it was found that 98 percent of the students involved in clubs would recommend their activity to others.

Students should be required to participate in extracurricular activities because they allow a student to discover or pursue something they enjoy, learn commitment towards an activity, apply it to many things outside of the club, and still have time to do other things after school.

One reason students should participate in extracurricular activities is they can pursue, or discover an activity that they enjoy participating in.

Two years ago, I joined yearbook club because my best friend was in it.

Starting out, I didn't think that I would enjoy it at all because I don't like editing.

Luckily, I was assigned to help take photos for the yearbook, and soon after joining, I discovered how much I enjoyed photography, which I would not have discovered if I hadn't joined that club. Most schools offer a wide variety of activities, like student council, chess club, or sports teams.

After gathering information from over 250 schools across the country, it was found that the average number of activities and clubs offered at each school was 21.

A few schools had almost 40!

Extracurricular activities are a great way for students to find something they love, or for students to get involved with their school, and with so much choice, there is something for everyone.

Another reason all students should be required to participate in extracurricular activities is students can learn a new skill not taught in school, and students learn commitment towards something they sign up for.

Most schools require students to take five core classes and two electives.

Many students use their electives to earn credits they need to graduate, like language courses, and fine arts classes.

Some students enjoy these classes, but there are plenty of students who do not enjoy them.

Requiring students to join a club would allow students to learn a skill or participate in an activity that they would not otherwise have time in their schedule to do.

In addition, extracurricular activities teach students the importance of commitment.

Last year, my sister signed up for the Eco-action club, and she was required to sign a commitment form that made her stay with the club and attend all semester.

She learned through that experience that it was important to find an activity she enjoyed and stay commited to it in order to get the most out of it.

Some students believe that they can join an activity, and switch whenever they feel like it, however this causes a lot of disruption to the people who are committed to the club, and does not allow the student to learn a new skill.

Requiring students to stay in one activity all semester would teach the importance of commitment to the student, and would allow them to get the most out of the extracurricular they have decided to take.

Another reason that students should be required to participate in extracurricular activities is the many applications that each skill has.

This year, it was found that students who participate in extracurricular activities score, on average, five percent higher on final exams than students who are not involved with any clubs or activities.

This shows that extra-curricular activities have a positive impact in the classroom.

A survey given to over 300 universities showed that colleges are 12 percent more likely to accept someone who participated in school clubs and other extra-curricular activities than someone who didn't.

In addition, there are many life applications to the skills learned in an extra-curricular activity.

For example, someone who takes part in student council learns leadership skills and can apply those to almost any situation. If a student joins the basketball team, they learn how to work as a team to achieve a goal, which is a valuable skill in life. Another example would include someone who joins a robotics team.

Other than learning how to make robots, the students who join robotics club learn how to make a plan to complete a task, problem solve, and handle themselves under pressure at a competition.

Even after learning about all the positive impacts that extra-curricular activities have in their schedule, some students are still concerned they will be unable to fit extra activities in their schedule along with homework, after school jobs, and community service. Clubs run about 45 minutes after each school day, and with the school day ending at 2:15 PM, students would be out of school at 3:00 PM, leaving hours to get home, do homework, and do anything else a student has in their schedule.

One of my friends participated in chess club after school, and got home around 3:30 PM.

He then worked on his homework until 4:45 PM, and worked a job until 7:00 PM.

Even though he had a lot to do after school, he still made time in his schedule to do chess club with his friends, and at the end of the year he said that he really enjoyed participating in a club, and he would do it again next year, and in years ahead.

Extra-curricular activities should be required for students because they allow a student to discover or pursue something they enjoy, learn commitment towards an activity, apply it to many things outside of the club, and still have time to do other things after school. Extra-curricular activities are important, and should be required, because without them, most students wouldn't have anything to look forward to each day.