Profile of self-concept and self-esteem on the academic performance among practitioners of physical education and extracurricular activities in middle-school students.

Background: The deprivation of components that exercise the body and mind by children and adolescents can lead to numerous long-term consequences in terms of physical health (cardiovascular diseases, bone problems, high cholesterol, obesity) and mental health (depression, low self-esteem and social isolation).

Methods: This investigation intended to identify a profile of self-concept and self-esteem, on the academic performance of middle-school children between practitioners of curricular physical education and extracurricular sport activities. The participants consisted of a total of 107 students, 55 (51.4%) were males and 52 (48.6%) were female, aged between 10 and 12 years. A total of 41 children (38.3%) attending the fifth grade and 66 children (61.7%) the sixth grade were randomly selected. The data collection instrument, Self-concept of Susan Harter validated for the Portuguese population was used and it was proceeded to a descriptive and inferential statistics data analysis to confront the mean levels of self-concept, global self-esteem and academic performance.

Results: As an influence of hours of weekly practice, we found statistically significant differences in terms of academic performance, that is, as the student practices more hours of physical exercise, there is a tendency for the student to obtain better academic results.

Conclusions: Apparently, the practice of extracurricular sport activities by students promotes a significant evolution in the formation of self-concept and academic performance, as well as suggesting a positive evolutionary trend in the formation of self-esteem of students who practice the several extracurricular sports.