To serve or not to serve… - Chicago, Illinois, public high school students will perform community service - Brief Article

0 Comments | Current Events, Oct 2, 1998

Starting this fall, the school day for Chicago's public high school students will not be over when the last bell rings. Like a growing number of high school students around the country, Chicago high school students will have to perform community service in order to graduate. They will be required to volunteer for 40 hours of community service between their sophomore and senior years. If they don't, they won't be able to graduate.

School officials hope the work will teach kids the value of volunteering and provide them with valuable skills. But opponents of the plan say forcing kids to volunteer goes against the spirit of volunteering, and takes time away from kids.

Learning While Giving

"We want students to learn the importance of community," said Chicago schools spokesperson Bruce Marchiafava. "They need to know that community is about giving, not just receiving."

Through activities such as tutoring younger students or helping the elderly, say volunteer program supporters, students learn skills as they help their community. Carpentry, teaching, and business skills are just some of the knowledge students can pick up. And, supporters say, kids will learn to work with others, which will help them in whatever field they choose in the future.

With 430,000 students, Chicago has the third-largest public school system in the country. That many volunteers, say supporters, can really make a difference in Chicago's less privileged communities.

Fears that community service might get in the way of studies are unfounded, argue supporters. A 1995-1996 survey of Florida kids involved in community service found that 74 percent of those students improved their grades, 62 percent had better attendance, and 69 percent had fewer disciplinary problems. Those numbers, say supporters, are reason enough for Chicago's service policy.

Don't Force It

You cannot learn the value of volunteering, say opponents, by being forced to do it. Only when kids choose to volunteer, they say, are they learning what volunteering is all about.

Forcing kids to work outside the classroom and beyond their normal homework is also unfair, opponents argue. Some families depend on kids to help support their families by working. Forcing extra work on those kids, say opponents, will only make them resent community service, not appreciate it.

A better method, opponents say, is the one used in the Oberlin, Ohio, school system. At Oberlin High, students can take community service as an elective course. Each student in the class designs his or her own project and is assigned a mentor, who helps the student along. Programs like those, say their supporters, allow interested kids to pursue community service but don't punish those who don't have the time.

Should community service by students be voluntary or compulsory? Why?