Creating a University-Wide Support System for the Academic Success of Student-Athletes: A Pilot Study

Abstract

The aim of this research was to determine whether the implementation of a methodology that allows the dual career student-athlete to follow up on a weekly basis the contents of the theoretical and practical sessions of the subjects taught in the classroom reduces the perception of barriers, promotes meaningful learning, and increases the motivation and satisfaction of the basic psychological needs. Eight student-athletes, all of whom were elite athletes, participated in the present research. Participants completed the Dual Career Proficiency Questionnaire, Perception of high-level university student-athletes on the dual career (ESTPORT), Exercise Benefits and Barriers Scale (EBBS), Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS), Goals perceptions questionnaire, Satisfaction of Psychological Needs in Education, Educational Motivation scale and ad hoc multiple-choice test on knowledge of the subject, before and after the delivery of a course in which a weekly follow-up was conducted with these student-athletes on the theoretical and practical part of the course. After the intervention, there was a significant decrease in the importance given by dual career students to emotional awareness (p=0.047), in the perception of emphasis on ego goals (p=0.041), and a significant improvement regarding the score obtained in the multiple-choice test score (p=0.033). In conclusion, a dual career support intervention based on providing students with the necessary materials to asynchronously follow the development of the subject, together with the use of self-assessment resources and personal tutorials to guide the process has proven to be effective in improving student-athletes’ knowledge of the subject, as well as reducing their egoorientation in the educational context.