Veronica Garren
Mrs. Boresen
Expos., p. 4
2 February 2009
Lost in Translation: Community Service
It is said that in today’s society, too many of the newer generations are uninvolved in their communities and should exhibit more responsibility as a citizen of the United States. To reinforce this idea, many believe citizenship classes should be taught in school and community service should be promoted by making it a requirement in order to graduate. On average, 60% of young adults ranging from the ages of fifteen to twenty do not favor the prospect of required community service for a high school diploma. Yes, community service is a great way to give back to one’s community as well as to enrich one’s personal development of morality. Yes, it can help one to develop good habits as a citizen and it looks great on college applications and resumes. But where is the line drawn between benefitting one’s community and benefitting one’s self? Can they live in harmony, or is “required volunteering” a crux? Although community service can benefit the intellectual well-being and moral health of a student, by requiring mandatory volunteerism to graduate from high school, the act could undermine the true meaning of community service and thus distort its intentions.
As a senior in high school, I find it difficult to manage work, school, family, friends, sports and clubs. As for community service, well, let’s just say it takes a back seat to other priorities. This isn’t to say that I don’t like to give back to my community, just that my community isn’t going to pay for my car insurance or give me an “A” in Calculus. Unlike me, there are many students in my school who have found the time to volunteer for different activities held in our small town. These are the students who will no doubt have an advantage as they progress. Colleges and employers can see true dedication from a student who steps out of the mold, who goes above and beyond the status quo. According to Neil Howe and William Strauss, authors of “Millennials Rising”, two-thirds of all public schools at all grade levels now have students engaged in community work, often as part of the curriculum. What distinguishes a student who is required to do community service from that of a student who does service upon their own free will is the true definition of volunteering: someone who works for free for a community or for the benefit of the natural environment primarily because they choose to do so. This also distinguishes a student who meets all the basic requirements to attend a University, and a student who meets more than the requirements and gets the choice of any University across the nation. In a nutshell, volunteering by choice separates “the men from the boys” in a competition of motivation and devotion.
When a student voluntarily gives back to their community, they gain an understanding of what their actions truly did for another and a sense of responsibility to themselves and to society, linking them into a web of social understanding. Amongst the hustle and bustle of American teenagers and their lifestyles, it is often easy to obscure the intent and purpose in an action. Upon mandatory service, a student is more likely to perform their duties without a sense of awareness of what they are doing and what the effects of those actions are in their community. Intentionally taking their time out of a busy schedule to volunteer in society could allow a student to identify a worthy cause and know how their contribution will affect the outcome. In this way, students will continue to search for worthy causes and continue to contribute back to their community, knowing they made a difference and that it is their responsibility to keep making that difference.
If required to volunteer for community services, what are the chances that the student will continue to exhibit good citizenship by engaging in community service in the future? To be forced to perform various charitable acts, the intentions of volunteering are compromised. Instead of volunteering to give back to the community and developing personal enrichment, the student would simply view community service like doing homework, chores, or even going to church because one is impelled to do so, making the process tedious and possibly un-enjoyable. If different community services were optional and could be chosen by the student, perhaps interest and dedication could work together with involvement to satisfy the requirement of volunteering. In an article posted in “Psychological Science” in January of 1999, it was said that researchers found that students who initially did not want to volunteer found that the action of helping others was more enjoyable if the requirements were gently applied and they incorporated the input and involvement of the students. In this way, students can give back while not feeling pressured to fulfill a mandatory service, thus motivating and improving the chances that they will continue to volunteer in the future and to truly comprehend why it is important to give back.
Although there is much controversy concerning the requirement of community service to graduate, recognizing the fact that community service is a prime ingredient to a functioning society is one concept we can all agree upon. Getting students to first participate in their community on their own is half the battle, getting the true cause and effect of volunteering across to students to explore their self interests and combining the concept of contribution on their own, students will develop their own sense of morality, independent form a required curriculum and thus, give back to society in their own unique way, becoming an active citizen in their own right. So yes, volunteering in one’s community is important in developing one’s self as an individual, however, it is also important in developing one’s community as one entity.
