A Win Win Win Scenario
Should community service be selfless? The idea of the disposing of the requirement of student service learning hours because of it being a slight annoyance is absurd. The current debate on Student Service Learning(SSL) and whether it should be required or not has become a debated topic, but as the debate progresses, the solution becomes quite clear. SSL should be required in all high schools because of the benefits of not only the service, but the effects outweigh the reasons to dispose of it. SSL not only lets students have a better chance of getting into college, but it also addresses and aids the community, exposes students to a working environment, and most of all helps students' learn life lessons and skills in high school that benefit their future.
In any community, every citizen plays a role in the helping and maintaining of it. One of the reasons these programs exist is to aid the community, but it does so much more than that as well. SSL creates a connection between the student and the community. Students have the power to address community needs and can even help with problems that interest them. Simrin Gupta of Silver Chips Online says the purpose of SSL is to,” Address community needs in a way that reinforces curriculum goals”(S2 12-13). Through community service, they can gain the opportunity to volunteer in fields that are similar to what they want to major in college. This can give students a personal edge on learning and SSL acts almost as a secondary version of education in the sense that they learn important lessons first hand, and gain an advantage over regular students. In fact, colleges look for students with experience in community service. This service looks better on students’ resumes, gives them specialized experience, and gives them a chance to help their community. The important question on the debate of the permanence of community service soon becomes bigger and bigger. Who has benefitted from this requirement? I have had first hand experience with SSL, and it is my own sister.
How much more do colleges want students with community service? Does it matter? Is the advantage enough a good enough reason to keep it? I have had experience with community service and the effects it has on a student, and I saw only benefits. My sister, while she was in college, accrued over three hundred hours through community service. Not only did she learn valuable lessons, but she also put her hours on her college applications and because of her hours in combination with her grades, she was much more sought after by colleges and was even given financial aid because of it. Community service does not have a single negative effect when applying for college. There is no denying the advantage she got with her service versus her equal acade...
