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Introduction
This article is a study examining the relationship between high school experiences and civic participation. According to the article, in the last fifty years, the level of civic participation has declined. This decline is particularly notable among young adults. Previous research on the matter indicates that other forms of public contribution have also waned. According to this research, these declines promote social unrest and economic downturns.
The articles approach to the study is based on prior research. This research demonstrates that high school students participation in extracurricular activities, civic knowledge, and volunteer work are all connected to civic participation during adulthood. The study investigates all three factors simultaneously. Previous research has investigated each factor independently. This article looks into various aspects relevant to the study. These include components of civic engagement like its foundation and levels of its knowledge.
In the following study, all three factors are first measured at the high school level. The data used was collected between the years 1988 and 2000. Groups of eighth-graders from across the country were first sampled. The sample was randomly picked and consisted of a balanced racial representation of American society. The first data was collected in the year 1988 with follow up collections conducted in 1990, 1992, 1994, with the last one being done in 2000.
The results of the study indicated that involvement in high school activities was a strong predictor of civic involvement. These civic involvements were in the form of local and presidential voting exercises. Those students who volunteered in high school were found to have higher instances of involvement in civic and youth volunteering.
According to the article, involvement in high school activities was a strong indicator of adult voting and volunteering patterns. Therefore, the article concludes that civic involvement can be increased by promoting adolescent involvement in community service (Hart, Donnelly, Youniss & Atkins, 2007, p. 214). In addition, the authors are of the view that civic knowledge promotes civic involvement.
Critique
This article is another milestone to the issues of civic involvement among the youth. Previously there have been numerous campaigns aimed at getting young adults involved in the civic process. However, this empirical study shows a direct relationship between involvement in high school activities and civic participation in adulthood. Stakeholders can use this study when formulating modalities of increasing civic participation among the youth. The articles contribution to this debate is monumental. This is because it employs scientific methods, as opposed to the usual debate forums.
The other strong point of this study is its timeline. The study was conducted over a period of twelve years. This factor adds to the credibility of this research. Previous studies conducted on this same subject lack such time investments. Conducting the study over such a long period patents the findings presented in the research. The study was conducted on a national scope. This makes the study a good representation of American culture. The results represent civic involvement in America, as opposed to a handful of states.
This study encompasses different aspects that might influence civic participation. Community service, civic knowledge, and extracurricular activities are all covered in the study. Most studies conducted on the same subject have only covered these factors singularly. This makes this study conclusive. This is because these three addressed factors are pivotal to civic participation. In addition, the article covers all bases of adolescent activities that may be related to civic participation.
The article brings out other important points in its findings. For instance, the level of civic knowledge among young adults is found to be very low. This information is important even to matters not related to the study.
This article stresses that even mandated community service motivates civic involvement. While this may be true, mandated community service is known to arouse negativities. This has been confirmed by other research on this subject. This finding might have been because of these negativities wearing off over time. Therefore, this finding should not be used to discredit previous research.
The article only emphasizes the positive effects of participation in high school activities has on later civic involvement. Any negative effects are not addressed in the article. According to the articles title, all aspects both positive and negative are supposed to be addressed.
The fact that this study is conducted over a long period can be a weakness to the study. This is because, over the course of the twelve years, there are bound to be many external factors affecting the study. For example, some of the participants may lose interest in the study before the eight years are over. In another scenario, participants may change their attitudes because of factors not related to the study. For example, they might move to different states or take up careers that limit their civic involvement.
Conclusion
This research is quite conclusive. However, there is a need to refine the class used. This might be in the form of gender, political affiliation, among other factors. The above research can be applied when formulating a high school curriculum. In addition, it may prove pertinent when mapping out extra curriculum activities for high school students.
Reference
Hart, D., Donnelly, T. M., Youniss, J. & Atkins, R. (2007). High school community service as a predictor of adult voting and volunteering. American Educational Research Journal, 44(1), 197219.
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