The academic achievement of high school female athletes in comparison to high school female nonathletes

In the high school setting, there is no greater concern than the issue of educational outcomes and improvements. It was the purpose of this study to examine the high school female athletes\u27 academic achievement in comparison to high school female students who do not participate in school sponsored athletic teams. The total population represented in this study was female students in the ninth through twelfth grades who attended two different public high schools in Franklin County, Tennessee during the 2005-2006 school year. The study examined the areas of ACT scores, GPA, class rank, unexcused absences from school, office disciplinary referrals, and student satisfaction scores for analysis purposes. The female athlete group consisted of all the female athletes who were in the ninth, tenth, eleventh or twelfth grade participating in high school basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, cross country, or swimming. The female nonathletes were any female in the ninth, tenth, eleventh or twelfth grade who did not participate in one of the above mentioned high school team sports. The sample for this study was fifty-five female athletes and ninety-one female nonathletes. The study utilized both descriptive and inferential statistics to adequately test nine hypotheses stated in the null and tested at alpha of .05. The study found that female athletes had a higher GPA than female nonathletes, but the difference was not statistically significant. However, the female athletes had a significantly lower class rank than the female nonathletes. In the areas of disciplinary office referrals and unexcused absences, there was not a statistically significant difference. But in regards to the CASE student satisfaction survey the female athletes had a significantly higher mean score than female nonathletes. Concluding the female athletes had a higher satisfaction with different areas of the school and school environment