Can Non-Academic Extracurricular Training Enhance Non-Cognitive Skills in Chinese Adolescents? An Empirical Analysis Using CEPS Data

In recent years, the Chinese Ministry of Education has implemented policies to reduce the academic burden on students by regulating extracurricular training in compulsory education. While academic tutoring has been restricted, non-academic extracurricular training has surged, prompting research into its impact on adolescents’ non-cognitive skills. This study used descriptive statistics and OLS multiple linear regression to examine the effect of non-academic after-school training on non-cognitive abilities. The results were further tested for robustness through quantile regression and sub-sample analysis to explore heterogeneity in the impact of training across different groups. The results of the study showed that non-discipline-based out-of-school training had a significant positive impact on adolescents’ non-cognitive development, with a significant inverted “U” curve effect, and further calculations revealed that holding non-discipline-based out-of-school training programs more than twice a week reduced its marginal benefit. In addition, the impact of non-discipline-based out-of-school training on adolescents’ non-cognitive abilities varied significantly by household registration, gender and household cultural capital, with males and rural adolescents benefited more, and high cultural capital household groups exhibited a slight positive impact.