Why Extracurricular Activites Should Be Enforced

What are ways that can help create a stronger and better student? The principal of Generic_School, Generic_Name, had an idea that will only help benefit and strengthen the students which is by assigning every student in the school with the responsibility of having to preform and maintain an extracurricular activity.

Allowing and giving the students a place where they can spark new interests and express themselves can have a tremendous boost to their mental health along with their self-esteem because of the environment they placed themselves in, and the fact that they can express themselves. A recent study done in Harvard, said, "93% of students that participate in extracurricular activities are 86% happier with themselves and others because the students are given a chance to express themselves, and feel safe from expressing themselves". A reason that proves why its better for students to have a strong and penetrable mindset is that students with stronger mindsets tend to do better in school. According to a professor from Yale, "Students with a good mental health do better in school because the students worry less and have a more positive mindset". Both of these studies prove how beneficial it can be to assign the responsibility to every student of having to maintain an extracurricular activity because in the long run the students will be happier both with themselves and others, and have a better education, along with a stronger mindset.

Students having to preform extracurricular activities can create new friendships, and bonds with people. An example of this would be if a student named Generic_Name was really into football and equally talented to the amount of love he has for the sport. Generic_Name tried out for the football team and he made the team and now played first string wide receiver. Throughout Generic_Name's football season he created a lot of close friendships with his teammates because of their strong roots of interest when relating to football. Another reason that supports the thesis of extracurricular activities creating friendships is from a study recently done in Northern Virginia, from the University of Marymount. According to a professor named Albert Finkilstein, "more then two thirds of people with similar interests become friends because of the mutual interests both parties share". Albert Finkilsteins research proves that the extracurricular activities can sprout new friendships among the student population of Generic_School. However, a very important effect that pieces together why is is so important for friendships to be made is that students with more friends have a stronger education. According to a study done in Callasbases Florida, "nearly 80% of students that have friends and are able to ask questions, share emotions with, and lastly feel comfortable with have a stronger education because students can rely on their friends for help with homework because students feel more comfortable asking questions to friends when compared to teachers". Another positive affect of creating friendships is that there will be a better High School experience for the student because of the friendships made and the trust that was formed. Overall, with creating friendships from the extracurricular activities comes a stronger education, more people to rely on, and overall a better high school experience because of the friendships made and the comfortability made from creating those friendships.

Forcing students to have to be able to balance school work along with an extracurricular activity can be very helpful in the idea of making students have to learn how to maintain efficient time management skills along with being more productive. One reason as to why extracurricular activities can be beneficial and help teach how to be productive of time to students would be that the students can't risk to have bad grades because the school of Generic_School is a prestigious private school meaning that the school only accepts the students with the best grades and the students that are willing to work the hardest. According to Generic_School, "90 % of all students in the school have straight A's", and, " Any student that doesn't have all straight A's than can only have at the most three B+ and then the rest straight A's". From how strict the school is with their grades it seems that they are very productive and efficient since they only expect 110% all the time. However, it is easy to slip up or possibly fall behind and the best way to keep the productiveness flowing and for the students to do their homework every night is to never stop being productive which is why having an extracurricular activity is very beneficial because it helps teach all of the students how to maintain productiveness and how to have good time management skills. An example of a student being productive with their time would be to go home and do their homework, and to then think ahead and piece the amount of projects that could be coming up and when to do them and then align the upcoming work with days that they are free to do the work so that the students don't overwork themselves and instead get their homework done when it needs to be done and then spacing out the upcoming projects on days that they are free. Overall, having extracurricular activities can help students expand on being more productive, being able to have good time management skills, and space things along with being able to maintain such things.

The strengths and effects that can be created with the idea of students having to maintain and participate in extracurricular activities are improving students mental health, students creating friendships with one-another, and lastly, the idea of students having to learn to balance extracurricular school activities with school work along with learning how to create more efficient time management skills and being more productive.