Why volunteering should just be volunteering - brightio (2023)

Forcing a student to volunteer can be frustrating for everyone, even the school or college.

It may be good for the organization but not for the individual or vice versa.

We need to understand that young adults are different and forcing them to participate in volunteer activities or a community service program can be detrimental to both the student and the non-profit organization.

10 Negative Effects of Mandatory Community Service

The idea of ​​mandatory student volunteering has gained traction in several countries to teach students the value of philanthropy, community involvement, and work experience. However, some critics have argued that such requirements can have negative consequences for young people, such as: B. Loss of academic focus and even student burnout.

seen as a punishment

High school or college students may view compulsory service as a punishment rather than a learning opportunity.

The idea is that the volunteer experience gives students the opportunity to understand the needs of people and organizations in their community. In this way, students learn valuable skills and develop social awareness and responsibility.

Some students prefer to spend their free time doing something other than volunteering at non-profit organizations that may not interest them.

Some teens find it unfair that they have to do free service hours while others don't. Others may not care about the types of organizations represented in the community, or feel that they can't make much of a difference anyway.

They see it as a waste of time and energy when they could use those service hours for some other extracurricular activity.

The problem is compounded by the fact that some students cannot choose where they are assigned or in which organization they want to work. This lack of choice increases the feeling among some students that their community service is a waste of time.

Resentment

Teens resent being forced to do something they think doesn't make sense.

The problem with community service is that it is often not seen as useful.

The feelings of "I don't need this" and "This is a waste of time" arise when an adolescent's sense of independence is threatened.

A charity project can be seen as an added burden to an already difficult final exam, or an unreasonable expectation from a school that they think should be about education and persuasive essays, not volunteering.

Some adolescents also feel that they have nothing to contribute to the local community and that their presence is not appreciated.That's why it's important to acknowledge those feelings and show them how their contribution can make a difference.

Regardless of how students feel about community service itself, most young adults who volunteer with my organization agree that making a difference in the lives of others is important and would rather do so than "have to to do it".

Values ​​are undermined

Teaching the value of charity is more effective when it comes from within than when it is imposed from without.

When students are forced to do mandatory volunteer hours, they may not be motivated to do so due to their own beliefs. Rather, they are told what to do and how to think about the problem.

The values ​​and ethics of the non-profit organization are challenged because adolescents are not given the opportunity to understand why, as members of the community, making a difference is an important requirement for them.

This school requirement can make students feel alienated from their role and even less willing to participate.

low performance

Forcing a high school or college student to volunteer can result in low morale. It leads to lower productivity than doing these things on your own, and it doesn't make your business look good (especially if the news reports low morale at your nonprofit).

Health and Safety Hazards

One of the biggest fears about mandatory community service is that people will take it less seriously. That's because they didn't choose it. You are not there for the right reasons.

What is the consequence? Health and safety could be at risk.

Students may very well be placed in a group with students who have no experience in the field and are not trained, which means that the tutoring is not as good as it should be. No one but themselves is directly responsible for their safety. So if they don't know what they're not paying attention to when they train, they can put themselves and others at risk.

Student volunteers who feel like they are being forced into community service are less likely to participate than those who are actually there because they want to.

This can result in less monitoring and ultimately more risk for everyone involved.

For example, when students do not complete their education properly, they increase the risk of harming themselves or others:

• A college or high school student may need to spend a few hours of community service cleaning up a park to get a 2 or 3 on their report card. This kills the whole idea because the high school or college student feels an obligation to do it and not because she wants to help someone.
• Another example is a high school or college student who is not a professional when it comes to working in certain industries or with certain people (disabled or elderly). she may not be able to help someone adequately, putting her health and safety at risk.

Consume

When you're forced to do something, your mind automatically shuts down so it can't absorb anything new.

Effective training is not possible when theThe school tries to force you because your mind can only learn something if it is interesting.or you burn for it.

That's why a high school or college student who is forced to do voluntary compulsory work often ends up ineffective and stressed. This leads to many problems like anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, etc.

ineffective at school

Compulsory volunteer work or pressure to do "good deeds" not only has a negative effect on students, but also on their career efficiency.

When teens are forced to do something they don't want to do, they are likely to experience stress and burnout. When that happens, it can become even more difficult for them to focus on their graduation requirements.

If the school makes volunteering mandatory and students don't like it, the school may also lose credibility in terms of its effectiveness.

generational gap

Volunteer work has always been an integral part of our society and helps build bridges between different generations and living environments and treat each other with more tolerance. However, many young people find community service boring and tedious.

If you force young adults to do community service, you won't get good results, as most of them just sit in their chairs wondering how much time they have to do this "boring stuff."

Mandatory community service will also widen the generation gap.

Lack of motivation for collective action.

Someone who doesn't want to get involved or feels compelled is less likely to get involved and participate during their community service.

As a result, other volunteers (who are doing it for the right reasons) will lose motivation and be less likely to participate with a positive attitude.

A student may also act carelessly because volunteering is not voluntary, further demotivating volunteers and ultimately making everyone involved in the project feel demotivated.

damage to the organization

Although it sounds tempting to make community service a duty, it doesn't help charities much.

First, when volunteer teams are not motivated, more mistakes are made that can affect the vulnerable communities that organizations are trying to help.

Second, more mistakes put the organization's reputation at risk.

And third, volunteers forced into community service have no other option where to volunteer. As a result, the social aspect is lost and the work becomes a chore for the students.

They have no control over the group they help and may not feel connected to the cause they are volunteering for. It also means more work for nonprofit organizations because they need more staff.

Volunteer-dependent nonprofits need more volunteers to function. When there are too many volunteers, nonprofits cannot manage all of them and may be forced to hire paid leadership staff to manage student volunteers.

A school or university should encourage its students to volunteer

Community service learning is still important to students' futures, but it shouldn't be required. Instead, schools should educate about why civic engagement is important and why it is important to consider volunteer opportunities.

I also believe that a lesson on community service requirements can be useful for both students and non-profit organizations to help students better understand that volunteering is a privilege and opportunity, work experience, and sometimes , leadership skills to accumulate.

Participating in a charity project should not be a burden.