Kahne and Westheimer argue that in order to “serve” the community, we need to reflect and change what needs to be fixed inside the community. They investigate two cases of service learning-- both reflect on matters affecting the community. In order to be a citizen, we have to provide a service learning experience to our resumes.
Quotes:
1.) “He argued for the creation of ‘miniature communities' in which students would work together to identify and respond to problems they confronted” (4).
In today's democratic society, there are many people in need of assistance. As citizens we have to recognize these people and find our own ways of helping them. The miniature communities that the authors are talking about are our own neighborhoods of helping hands. As a VIPS volunteer, I think that the school I work at is a miniature community because it is filled with children who need to be taught something. It is my responsibility to recognize these students and to respond by teaching them what I think is best for their learning experience.
2.) “In contrast, much of the current discussion regarding service learning emphasizes charity, not change. The claim regarding the relation of service learning to the development of altruism is relatively articulate and, in many respects, compelling” (4).
It is so difficult to change a person. A student may volunteer because he/she has to do it. But to get a student to take something away from charity and learn and grow from their experience is an amazing feat. I know that in high school we had to do charity work in order to graduate. I worked at a nursing home, but I was not appreciative of my experience. I received no change from my experience. I just did it because I had to. But working with VIPS has made me feel like I was changing a child's life by being at the school and working one on one with him/her.
The authors identify charity as "giving" and the deep relationship received from charity as "caring". I think that when you volunteer, you are giving yourself to another person. As a young adult, I recognize that when you give your energy into something, you become selfless. That is what I get out of service learning. I drop the "me, me, me" act and think of someone besides myself. That is altruism.
3.) “Maybe this [community service] is what citizenship is about, acting in a decent way toward people who live where we live” ( 9).
What JFK said about serving your country is true. We need to ask what WE can do for our country, not the other way around. Why not serve the people who need help? What if we ever needed help? Would we hope for assistance? I know I would. In middle school I learned about reciprocal respect. Do unto others, as they do unto you. Under Obama's new US policies, we should provide service anywhere we see fit. It is all about citizenship.
Comments:
I thought this article was pretty boring because before we started with VIPS, we discussed how we need to provide service and learn from it. Going to a Catholic school my whole life, I know what charity work and giving is all about. As I am maturing, I realize that I am learning and growing from my service learning. It makes me feel good to help out. I do not want to do it because I have to (like I have done in the past). I want to be a citizen of the US and according to Kahne and Westheimer, I need to provide my services to those who need it.
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