I have spent two hours of every Thursday for the past three months at Hancock Elementary School, a school in Norristown. As an English and communication major, one may wonder why I spent over 15 hours at an elementary school during this semester for my seminar 300 class.
Every Cabrini student is aware of the fact that as a junior, we have to take a seminar 300 class, and a portion of that class is mandatory community service.
In order to complete this community service, my class was given a few options of sites where we could volunteer. These options included a homeless shelter, various middle schools and elementary schools, a home where nuns live or a cite where volunteers assist immigrants in their learning of the English language. None of the options particularly appealed to me, but I figured that two hours a week at an elementary school would be my best bet.
I couldn’t picture myself being comfortable at a homeless shelter, teaching immigrants the English language or spending time with the elderly. Therefore, I volunteered within the 21st century program, which is a program developed to assist children who are struggling in math and reading. The main goal of this program is to increase the test scores of children who received poor scores on their PSSA tests in the past.
I spent most of my time with the reading group at Hancock Elementary. Although I did learn a few things about communicating effectively with children, I don’t necessarily believe my time spent there was worth while. I was extremely busy this semester with the rest of my classes, and I feel that I could have used those additional two hours per week to my benefit, in some other way.
I think that Cabrini should examine juniors enrolled in the seminar 300 classes. They should ask questions regarding the mandatory community service, and determine whether or not students should be forced to complete those hours, through the students’ feedback. I feel that I could have succeeded in my seminar 300 class, and that I could have learned a great deal without attending Hancock Elementary each week.
Furthermore, although a few children appreciated our presence, I felt that most students were unappreciative for the most part. Some of the children were rude, and did not want the assistance that we were there to provide. I think it’s great that education majors want to be involved with these children and they want to assist and teach them. However, if I am an English and communication major, I do not necessarily want to take part in this aspect of community service. I know that there are other options; however they didn’t interest me either.
I felt overwhelmed at some points throughout the semester, therefore I certainly do not think 15 hours of community service benefited my education and I don’t think it was necessary or should be mandatory.
Posted to the web by Shane Evans
