Should Community Service Be Required?

The majority of students surveyed believed that community service should be required to graduate. Out of the 22 students surveyed, 17 believed it should be required. Many of those who said that it should be required to graduate said they thought it was a good way to get a taste for the real world, along with a good way to help behavioral issues.

One of the students surveyed who believed it should be required said, “I believe that community service should be required for students to graduate. It is beneficial for students to do because it helps students understand what it means to work hard both for your grades, and the people around you. I also think that this will encourage more positive behavioral choices in students if required. This will also be a good opportunity for young adults to go out and mature a bit in a fun, active way.” The whole point of volunteer work is that you are going to do it out of the goodness in your heart, and not being forced to do it. By forcing students to volunteer to the community defeats the purpose of community service.

The majority of school districts do not require it. Some examples of districts that require it are the District of Columbia and the Sanford Maine District. Spaulding High School, at the moment, does not require students to volunteer to graduate. The fact that community service is not required means that students who volunteer are going out and volunteering because they really want to help their community. They are not just doing it so that they are eligible to graduate.

By requiring community service hours it becomes more of a priority, not a voluntary action. Volunteer work should be something that someone goes out of their way to do. It is something that someone should want to do out of the goodness of their heart. By forcing it on students, the drive to work hard is lost.

Article by Carly Taylor