Children who take on after-school activities such as music, drama and dance are more likely to do well in reading and maths tests, a new study has found.
However, taking on too many after-school activities can cancel out some of the educational benefits.
At the other end of the spectrum, children who spent most of their spare time in unstructured activities such as watching television fare worst in the tests.
Growing Up in Ireland - Influences on 9-Year-Olds' Learning: Home, School and Community involved interviews with 8,568 nine-year-old children, as well as interviews with their parents, teachers and principals, in 2007/2008.
It found that boys were more likely to spend their spare time doing sports and playing computer or video games, while girls were more likely to do cultural activities.
Children from privileged backgrounds tended to be involved in social networking and cultural activities and were also more likely to fall into the “busy lives” group, undertaking a wide range of after-school activities. Taking account of social background, there was no difference between the performance of the “busy lives" group and the group of children who spent most of their time watching television and playing sports.
The study also found that gaelscoileanna students were more likely to be involved in cultural activities and less likely to spend their spare time watching television. Children from immigrant families tended to be social networkers, while children with learning disabilities were more likely to fit into the television and sports group.
Responding to the report, Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn said parents must take more responsibility for what their children do in their spare time.
Television has become “the all-present electronic baby-minder” or baby distracter,” he said. “I think an active involvement by parents is part and parcel of the message. The classroom cannot solve everything, and this study shows in fact that the home from which you come . . . can be a nurturing home or can be one that’s indifferent.”
The children interviewed for this study are now 13 years old and are taking part in follow-up interviews as part of the national study.
For a full download of the report see growingup.ie/childpublications
