The article “Serve Or Fail” by Dave Eggers discusses the advantages of making volunteering a requirement in college. It is largely focused on the difference students can make in their community through a requirement like this. Eggers first makes the point that college students have a lot of time to kill- more so than other age groups- therefore, are the perfect demographic to do this kind of work. He calculates that if every college in America makes a 10 hour annual community service requirement, excluding community college students and students with too many other demands in their life, America would gain 60 million volunteer hours to various organizations. He goes on to describe how students themselves benefit from the work- they learn to balance volunteer work with everything else, it teaches them how they can make a difference, and it can even have a profound effect on their lives.
Eggers is, obviously, very strongly for the implementation of required volunteer hours in college. He makes a good case logically when he calculates the amount of volunteer hours America would gain from such an enactment, and ethically when he discusses the various benefits for students and the community. Humor is also thrown in to the mix (an appeal to pathos) when he mentions his own college days.
The author of “How to Reduce Student Dropout Rates: Link Volunteering to Studies” gives a brief argument about how service learning implemented early on in a student’s education can prevent dropout rates later on. The author makes the difference between volunteering and service learning early on: service learning is simply volunteering weaved with specific academic instruction. John Cruz’s work as the superintendent of the school district in California’s Central Valley is analyzed. Cruz gives children in his students volunteering opportunities from elementary school until graduation, which has yielded astonishing results. Attendance rates in his schools are high while the dropout rates are incredibly low (this is in comparison to the neighboring county which does not incorporate service learning into the system). The difference is attributed to the fact that service learning, “…bridges schoolwork to the real world…” Their knowledge, it is said, is applied to something relevant instead of just sitting around in their heads- this must benefit their learning a great deal. The article is strait forward and logical in its arguments, but still makes a strong case for service learning.
StartTribute’s editorial “’Service Learning’ More than a Fad” focuses more on the benefits of service learning for organizations, although it touches on benefits for students as well. The main subject is Minnesota’s college presidents who joined with the organization Minnesota Campus Compact. Service learning activities enacted by schools have come into question of being cut due to a tight budget. The question is over whether or not volunteering is really necessary in higher education. The author argues that, yes, volunteer activities are not only a help to the community, but also to the students- “engagement” is the key word. Engagement in these real world activities deepens learning and gives people a sense of purpose and teaches the students to feel responsibility to their communities. The author also argues that, since baby boomers and their young adult children are the two largest demographics in the country, there is a lot in human capital to be gained from their work, and it may make up for the shortage of monetary capital. The author appeals to logic when discussing the benefits to the budget crisis and pathos when discussing the deep, more emotional benefits to the students.
All of the authors agree on the benefits volunteering can have to the community and to students. They all also argue for a requirement to be made in schools, although Eggers and the author of the StarTribute editorial only discuss a college requirement, while the author of Christian Science Monitor’s article discusses a service learning requirement throughout primary education.
After reading the three articles, I would argue for service learning or volunteer requirements in schools. Volunteer work is, after all, always in demand, and always helpful to the organizations that receive it; no one would dispute this. Children and young adults, though, are not likely to seek volunteer experience on their own, so a requirement is a good way to get them into it. Once they actively participate in a volunteer opportunity, it has many benefits to them as well. It’s a real world application of skill and knowledge, no matter how simple the task. It allows them to work with and network with adults that have the potential to stand as teachers, or even mentors. It gives them experience in the real world, it can boost their self-esteem, and it can even build their resumes. All of these things can aid them when they seek jobs in the future.
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