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Responses to:
The Separation of Service-learning from Volunteering...and Does It Matter?
Submitted 12 August 2009 by Lucas Meijs,
Rotterdam School of Management,
the Netherlands
I propose to start seeing service learning as one of the modules of what I would call "involved learning". Involved learning encompasses situations in which an explicit learning objective is linked to volunteering. Other modules are or can be for example: corporate volunteering, social activation, volunteering as integration tool and active aging.
In early 2009 Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and the City of Rotterdam (the Netherlands) together organized an invitaional conference on this issue. Participants agreed that specifically seen from the nonprofit agency perpspectives there should be possibilities of achieving synergy in the different programs.
Submitted 5 August 2009, Anonymously
Here at the Forest Preserve District as the Volunteer Supervisor (yes I am paid that is my title), I am encouraged to say that volunteering with an educational component is alive and well. Whenever I get the opportunity to work with teachers to have students volunteer I try to make the experience relevent to the subject matter at hand. Sometimes the teachers are merely looking for the 'Green Living' component and then the opportunities may not match subject matter. Regardless every effort is made to add educational value to volunteering. Students tend to return if they know why they are doing something and can buy in.
Submitted 4 August 2009, Anonymously
I have worked in the service learning field for ten years and I agree with many of Susan’s points that as the field has developed, it has been with a focus on school based service learning. However, I take issue with Susan’s portrayal of the issue in an "us" (volunteer coordinators/organizations) vs. "them" (schools) manner. I also do not agree with her characterization of service learning vs. volunteering.
The bottom line is this: in the majority of cases, service learning requires both a school and community based partner that are well versed in service learning (I say majority because it is possible for a school or an organization to implement service learning independently). In fact, the recently released Standards for Quality Practice include "Partnerships" as one of the eight standards. They also include "Meaningful Service" and "Link to Curriculum". The problem I have run into in my years of trying to engage both schools and organizations is that they don't understand one another. Yes, the statement that “From the agency’s perspective, the answer [as to whether service or learning takes precedence] will always be service. “ is true. Just as it is true that from the school’s perspective, the answer will always be learning. The beauty of service learning is that by involving both perspectives, the students receive the best benefit. They become active participants in their own education that is relevant not when they graduate, but now and they begin to understand the vastness of the nonprofit sector and the role they can play in it. And, by involving both perspectives and including a deliberate emphasis on learning, the students are doing something different than volunteering. Not better than volunteering; different.
“Learning” in service learning means just that; rarely does an organization involve volunteers without providing them with some education. It doesn’t have to mean “curricular standards”. Unless, the organization wants to partner with a school. That is a simple reality. Teachers and administrators are under immense pressure to demonstrate that everything they do connects to state standards. Rather than criticize the different approaches of schools and organizations, why not celebrate the strengths that each partner brings and focus on working together rather than making it “us” vs. “them”? The focus should be about how service learning occurs (again, see the Standards for Quality Practice), not where it occurs.
Submitted 4 August 2009 by Joy Des Marais,
Globe University/MN School of Business,
Brooklyn Center, MN USA
I agree wholeheartedly with this issue which is why, as a college educator and service-learning practitioner, I also participated in the certificate in volunteer leadership training offered by MAVA (MN). I can easily speak to both educators and nonprofit professionals about service-learning and what it means for them AND the perspective of the "other." Have others invited educators to participate in their activities?
Submitted 4 August 2009 by Randi Gonzalez, Volunteer Coordinator at
Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and Board Member of DOVIA-LA,
Los Angeles, CA USA
Service hours can be a valuable tool that may inspire an otherwise disengaged student to volunteer on their own or be made aware of possible career choices. But are students who are required to complete service-learning or community service hours truly volunteers? Some students do become regular volunteers and we welcome them into our programs with great success. Most don’t continue beyond their basic requirement.
My experience is that many students don’t know why they have to do hours. Students call, “I have to do service hours and I’ve chosen your place.” Many do not know how many hours are required, when the deadline is for completion and is there any specific type of work they can’t do (e.g., stuffing envelopes) or what type of experience they need to fulfill class requirements.
There are so many facets to academic service hours – parent involvement (too much/too little); rote assignments; arbitrary number of hours assigned. Why aren’t students given time during school hours to provide service if it’s that important to the curriculum?
This is a topic that never seems to be far away when volunteer managers get together.
Submitted 4 August 2009 by Val Rogers, Volunteer Coordinator,
Friends of Buford Park & Mt. Pisgah,
Eugene, OR, USA
As Volunteer Coordinator for a small non-profit working in the field of native habitat conservation, I have observed a trend of increasing numbers of K-12 students seeking "service-learning" opportunities at our local nature reserve. We offer the kind of hands-on activities (removing invasive weeds, propagating native plants) that can accommodate large numbers and hence have become a popular site for short visits by these groups. However, I often have little or no meaningful contact with teachers and so must assume that they are following through with linking the service to learning objectives.
I feel at a disadvantage when seeking funding from grants that support service learning because our agency doesn't do curriculum. We're simply the site where the service takes place. Yet running a successful and productive outdoor service project in a short timeframe with dozens of students takes a lot of staff preparation and support. We need to be supported as the community partners providing meaningful service opportunities to students.
Submitted 4 August 2009 by Jo Ella Barrie,
Nevada Volunteers
AmeriCorps VISTA,
Reno, NV USA
At Nevada Volunteers, we do have a foot in both worlds and we welcome great ideas that we can use to bridge the gap between service-learning and community agencies. I am wrapping up my final weeks as an AmeriCorps VISTA at Nevada Volunteers where my focus was on promoting both service-learning and youth volunteerism in all its forms. Now, because of a Congressionally Directed Grant, I will be staying on as a staff member to promote service-learning on Nevada's College Campuses. Since we are not housed in a higher education instituion and we are a state with limited infastruture around both service-learning and volunteerism, we have decided our strength begins with our great community partners and our work in volunteer management. We hope to act as a broker for bringing together community agencies, educators and Nevada college students to explore the very issues you have raised in this topic. We'll be happy to let you know how it goes! You can find us at www.nevadavolunteers.org
Submitted 4 August 2009, by an anonymous volunteer manager, OH, USA
Susan, you are right on target with this topic! I recently attended a service learning conference where agency volunteer administrators were invited to attend alongside educators. I found the conference material more focused toward an educator’s viewpoint. I did raise the point at the conference that while linking learning to the service is wonderful, it does not add as much value to the community if it is not linked with the actual needs of the community. Who better to know about real community service needs than the volunteer administrators who are on the front lines of service delivery?
In my opinion, working with volunteer administrators and determining community needs should be the first step in developing a service learning project.
Submitted 3 August 2009 by H. Roberts,
PLNJ Inc. - Blankie Depot,
Keyport, NJ, USA
Susan, I think the time has come for VRM's across the country/globe to organize a full scale VRM Conference. 3 days of non stop VRM policy making and professional public education. One clear & concise opportunity to stand tall. Let everyone else take notes for a change!
The current state of service learning programs is only one, albeit large, example of why the profession is slipping through our well heeled, highly educated, busy hands.
VRM's should be drafting invitations, cultivating and booking speaker bureaus, constructing innovative workshops and shouting overdue consensus' of opinion; taking a proactive and instrumental role in this profession. Nothing will change if we continue to discuss but do little to challenge. Worse yet, are we guilty of self serving solutions, rarely exhausting our collective wisdom. VRM's need to rally more often and get worked up!
We all read the same news items. This profession is picked over and often apart at the exclusion of the very pros working in the field. Continued misinformation and mis representation will only fail us. All of us.
Why do we settle for third-party relevance? Why are we surprised by the latest "makeover" when our ever-changing, service-providing industry is hijacked without our front and center input.
There are plenty of conferences covering VRM topics but how often do VRM's initiate these opportunities? If VRM's are more than a volunteerism topic (and we are!) what are we waiting for?
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