Volunteering vs.Community Involvement
Are you getting the most out of your 40-hours of community service? Does your 40-hour requirement feel like a chore to get out of the way before going out and having fun?
In Ontario, students attending secondary school must complete 40-hours of community involvement as a requirement for graduation. The purpose of this requirement is to "encourage students to develop awareness and understanding of civic responsibility and of the role they can play and the contributions they can make in supporting and strengthening their communities" (Ontario Ministry of Education).
It seems like many students are not necessarily keeping this purpose in mind when searching for activities that meet the requirements for them to complete their 40-hours. How many students sign-up for positions where they are carrying materials around, taking tickets, or parking cars at an event? While these roles provide short-term value to organizations and events, do they really help students understand civic responsibility and encourage them to take on a larger role in strengthening their community?
How can we change the way that students complete their 40-hours? Maybe we can start with the language we use. Often, I hear people refer to “volunteer hours” in regards to the 40-hour requirement. But “volunteering” is not a term that is necessarily interchangeable with “community involvement.”
Volunteer: "one who renders a service or takes part in a transaction while having no legal concern or interest" (Merriam-Webster).
Community involvement: “helps students to:
increase their awareness of community needs
identify with their community
accept community membership
learn to make a difference in the community
develop a positive self-image through contribution to community life”
Volunteers are vital to the delivery most, if not all, community projects and initiatives. We need volunteers to move materials, park cars, and take tickets at events. We need volunteers to flood outdoor rinks, rake leaves, and run community centre canteens for day-to-day community operations. However, do these positions provide the enriching experiences that will increase youth’s awareness of, and help them identify with, the community?
Let's start with the way we talk about the requirement itself. When discussing these opportunities with youth, make the distinction between "volunteering" and "community involvement" clear. Outline the benefits of seeking roles that are more involved (identifying with the community, learning HOW to make a difference in the community, developing positive self-image, and gaining experience that will help when entering the job market) and ask youth what their goals are when they are looking for ways to complete their 40-hours. Are they just looking to complete the requirement as fast as possible? Are they looking to explore areas of interest that they can turn into a career? Are they looking to develop skills that they have? What about skills they don’t have?
Community involvement empowers youth in a way that volunteering does not. It offers ownership over the experience and gives them the ability to make a real difference and, perhaps more importantly, does so in a way that will encourage them to come back to do more!
Make Connexions and Get Involved!
-J
