Schools excel in sports — and academics

Ohio high schools that invest in athletic success also produce more academic success, concludes a study by Jay Greene and Dan Bowen published in the Journal of Research in EducationA winning sports team and higher student participation in sports correlated with higher test scores and a higher graduation rate, writes Greene in Education Next.

A 10 percentage point increase in overall winning percentage is associated with a 0.25 percentage point increase in the number of students at or above academic proficiency. When we examine the effect of winning percentage in each sport separately, once again winning in football has the largest effect. Girls’ basketball also remains positive and statistically significant (at p < 0.10), but boys’ basketball is not statistically distinguishable from a null effect.

Adding one winter sport increases the percentage of students performing proficiently by 0.4 of a percentage point, while an additional 10 student able to directly participate in sports during the winter season relates to a 0.6 percentage point increase in students at or above proficiency.

A winning sports team may create a sense of pride in the school and bond students and parents. Playing on a sports team may inspire students to show up at school every day, keep their grades up to maintain eligibility and learn responsibility, teamwork and goal setting.