The influence of school location, enrolment and socio-economic status on participation and success in inter-school swimming and track and field athletics competitions

Australia has one of the most inequitable education systems in the world. While researchers have investigated these inequities in terms of academic achievement, attendance and behavioural outcomes, there is much less known about the impact of inequity on students' participation and achievement in school-based physical activity and sport opportunities. This study investigated the impact of social and educational advantage on participation and success in primary school swimming and track and field athletics competitions in two Australian states. Multiple regression was used to see if the Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage (ICSEA), total school enrolments and geographic location predicted school participation and success. Findings showed that ICSEA had a significant influence on swimming competition participation and success, with enrolment and location also being significant for some regions. However, our data showed less significant differences for these three variables regarding track and field athletics competitions. Implications of these findings are discussed.