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Advantages and disadvantages of community service
The advantages of community service
The advantages of community service
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Throughout their careers, students are asked to complete a variety of tasks. These tasks can vary from homework, to studying for the SAT, being involved in a sport, and participating in community service. The predicament comes into action when administrative faculty are left with the question of whether or not this service should be required to graduate. Although many may argue otherwise, it is clear that community service should be required because it encourages the progress of students at school, gives them exposure to the world, and provides students with knowledge that is inaccessible at school.
Requiring students to participate in service projects promotes academic success. Even when they are mandatory, the benefits from the hours that the students would complete, are evident. In a case investigating the validity of service as a violation of the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery, the court came to the conclusion that mandatory community service is more “educational than exploitative”(“Involuntary volunteers?”). So why is it that the majority still refuses to accept this mandate? Education is what has established the superiority of nations worldwide, so what the public must see is that these service hours are fundamental to the growth of students. As students continue to study at school, they create their own goals, but they become difficult to pursue. A study was conducted that came to the conclusion that, “girls who are involved in community service are less likely to get pregnant and less likely to fail in school”(Newquist). Community service would directly affect the likelihood of passing school for a majority of the student body. Ensuring that more students would succeed in school outweighs the argument that this...
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...2012.Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Ezarik, Melissa M. "Mandatory Student Volunteerism Benefits Everyone Involved." Volunteerism. Ed. Gary Wiener. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2007. At Issue. Rpt. from "Good Deeds Are Good Indeed." Career World (Sept. 2003).Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Goldsmith, Suzanne E. "The Community Is Their Textbook." The American Prospect 6 (1995): 22. Print.
"Involuntary Volunteers?" Current Events 4 Nov. 1996: n. pag. Print.
Newquist, Connie. "Community Service: Opportunity or Exploitation?" Education World 10 Nov. 1997: n. pag. Print.
Sortal, Nick. "Community Service Hours: What High School Students Need to Know: Caring for Animals, Tutoring Kids, Helping Seniors: Volunteer Hours Are More than a Graduation Must, They Are Life Lessons." South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Sept. 2009. Web. 25 Apr. 2014.
Growing up, my parents and other influential figures around me modelled the importance of community service through their continual volunteer work and dedication to improving the world around them. Whether it be participation in a well-attended project or persistent contribution to a helpful organization, those aforementioned individuals were formative in guiding me towards a path filled with opportunities for having an impact on my community.
Imagine a typical teen, they have a job, homework, sports, and other extracurriculars. They don’t get home till late at night and they are exhausted. This teen can take much more and thankfully they are about to graduate, but wait the school wants them to fit in one hundred of community service into that schedule in order to graduate. How on earth is this busey teen suppose to do that with all that they have going on? Students should not have to do one hundred hours of community service to graduate high school.
This school should not require 100 hours of community service as a graduation requirement because of the busy lives of teenagers, the pressure of graduation, and loss of enthusiasm for community service. Schools should encourage community service but this is not the way to do it.
Kim, in the United States, grades are not the only factor in evaluating school applicants and job candidates. From Rhodes Scholar selections to college applications, excellence in other areas such as leadership, volunteer activities, sports and arts is equally important (p82-90). In American schools, students are encouraged to do volunteer work. So much so that many schools have guidelines for how much time students are expected to spend serving in the community. Children learn the value of giving from an early age. Volunteer activities is one way Americans feel a part of things and share the goal of serving and contributing to build their communities. From neighborhood watch programs to environmental issues, Americans do not wait for the government to initiate action: they take action to bring about the changes they desire. Therefore, Americans view volunteer work as a way to teach children and young adults values such as cooperation and teamwork, dedication and work ethics, equality and social justice, leadership, generosity and compassion for
Community service hours are a significant issue to all students around the globe, as they are taking a substantial amount of time away from their lives scouring for some kind of work to do. This is especially a problem for those who do not live near any public organizations, and do not have the schedule to do any work for them. Most students go searching around their neighborhood asking if their neighbors have any work for them, which does not help anyone academically. Thus, most community service hours that are done don’t relate to their academic classes or technical area.
How did a departmental faculty generated 12,000 hours of student community service in one semester? The following is a qualitative analysis of conversations with faculty members in a department that recently instituted a service learning requirement for all student majors. The campus is a large urban comprehensive university with a multi-ethnic student body. Approximately fifteen faculty members were interviewed for this study. While most of those interviewed included service learning components in their courses, interviews with faculty members who resisted or refused to incorporate service learning were conducted as well in order to understand varying faculty attitudes towards service learning.
In fact, the purpose of school is to educate knowledge and responsibility for future jobs and community positions. So, schools offer a plethora of activities for diverse student bodies. Nearly 80% of students participate in extracurriculars, and 57% of students have activities outside of school every day (“Survey…”). Every student is different; therefore, a broad program should not be forced upon students, especially when diverse extracurriculars are already in place. Additionally, over a quarter of 16 to 19 year olds have jobs (“Unemployment Remains...”). Between extracurriculars, part-time jobs, and academics, young citizens are forced to learn about time management, patience, and hard work. Moreover, students already volunteer on their own. Organizations such as Student Council and the National Honors Society require that their members participate in school or community events. Public service hours also factor into college acceptances and scholarship awards. When students are already learning leadership skills by volunteering on their own, requiring extra volunteer hours can be easily mistaken as a punishment or chore. Most high schoolers have tight schedules. It is even more tasteless to enforce mandatory public service upon students because they are “disadvantaged” (Levine 639). Here, volunteerism sounds more like court-ordered community service than an educational opportunity. Students,
Community Service is a service that is performed for the benefit of the public or its institutions. There are two groups who perform community service, and those are criminals and the rest of us. This means that, for the majority of us, performing community service is completely voluntary. It is for this reasons li that I believe that community service should not be mandatory in high school for graduation. The supporters of this act think of it as an ideal society’s noble concept, but it is rather a noble concept trying to force an ideal society. When you look at it from this perspective you realize it is ironic.
Community service: What a wonderful opportunity for students! A chance for our younger citizens to learn responsibility, experience the satisfaction that comes with helping others and to acquire new skills.
Volunteering enables an individual to make a positive impact on his or her community, while empowering the individual to better his or her life. This summer, I had the opportunity to volunteer at many diverse locations. From the hospital to the local library, I truly value my experience and treasure everything it has thought me. Volunteering lets us experience and learn things that we otherwise would not have learned; volunteering opens doors for us that we may not have been able to open before. Volunteering provides us with guidance and tolerance which we may use in the future to aid us in our decisions. At first glance, volunteering may seem to only benefit those who are helped, but on a deeper level, one can realize that volunteering benefits the volunteer as much as, if not more than, those who are helped. Not only does volunteering make a difference in one’s community, but it also helps the volunteer become a smarter, happier, friendlier and more caring individual.
In an article written by Linda Saslow titled High School Mandating Community Service for Graduation, she mentions the many pros to mandatory community service. Saslow mentions school districts like Roslyn and Hewlett-Woodmere (1994, para 3) that have started requiring high school students to complete a certain number of community service hours in order to graduate high school. Their goal is to give “kids the opportunity for new experiences” (Saslow, 1994, para 4). Through research conducted by the school districts, they have come to the conclusion that students who would’ve been “too shy to volunteer have admitted that they were glad they had been forced”. This is good because it’s bringing students together and really opening them up to new
Kim Obispo Mr. Smith AP Language and Composition 1 October 2014 Americans Benefit from Volunteerism Volunteerism is extremely beneficial to many Americans across the country. Volunteerism helps people in various ways that you may have never thought of before. Not only does volunteerism help the intended people, but the volunteers as well. People gain so much by volunteering. Volunteers are able to grow in many ways you might think are unattainable through their work.
Most people don’t realize that part of being a good citizen means to help with things in your community. This being said, people are questioning whether or not high school students should be required to perform at least ten hours of community service. Most high school students don’t have a strong bond with their community, and it is believed by some people that community service hours could help resolve this issue. Although community service is an easy way to become more involved with your environment, some also think that it potentially could interfere with students who participate in extracurriculars. In my opinion, students should be required to participate in at least ten hours of community service because it can help create a powerful connection between a student and their community.
Students should have the freedom to choose the kind of volunteering they would like to do. Volunteering could potentially lead to students being able to find a career, or if not a career, then possibly scholarships for college (Ain). Even if it does not end in a job at the place that they are volunteering at, it gives them the experience to put on a resume for a future job that they might have. Students may not be getting paid for their time and effort towards volunteering, but in the end they are getting paid (EdLab). Service hours provides students with many different experiences, whether it be volunteering at a nursing home helping out with senior citizens, or serving food at a soup kitchen, giving to people who are less fortunate (Gazette).
America’s culture of service and hard work is crumbling. Our military and public service members are no longer respected, and American young people feel entitled to a world with one view point: theirs. Many who already serve their community or nation in some way rave of the positive change they have seen in their lives after giving time and energy to others. Most modern high schools strongly suggest their students get involved in the community and joining a service orientated organization. Based on evidence that service to others develops an individual’s personality, character and view point, civic and civil service work should be required to complete sections of schooling in the American education system, in an effort to change today’s