Capstone Research Project:

The Impact of Volunteerism during Adolescence

Conducted by: Adam Nasiek

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INTRODUCTION
Although volunteerism may not provide individuals with monetary compensation (Cnaan,
Handy, & Wadsworth, 2006), there are profound personal and social rewards that can manifest
from undertaking volunteer work (Clary & Snyder, 1999). Some researchers have suggested that
enrolling in community service can build identities that provide meaning and purpose and thus
enhance psychological well-being (Piliavin, Keyes, Haidt, 2003, p. 228). Besides these
immediate positive effects that many volunteers experience, there are individual benefits to be
derived from doing volunteer work that reach far beyond the volunteer act itself and may linger
long after the volunteer role is relinquished (Wilson & Musick, 1999, p. 167). Therefore,
participation in non-profit activities appears to have immediate and long-term benefits that may
not otherwise be experienced through typical consumer-driven employment. The current paper
seeks to uncover the importance of volunteerism in the lives of high school students in terms of
their personal and social development.
QUESTIONS
The following are questions that I will address in my self-study: How can students
benefit from enrolling in different volunteer programs? How can some of the obstacles that
people encounter in the context of volunteerism be overcome? What are the pros and cons of
high school students being required to conduct volunteer work? And ultimately, what can I do
within my school to promote the benevolent virtues that are associated with community service?
I will attempt to answer these questions by delving into a profound exploration of my experience
with volunteerism. First, I will describe the rationale behind investing myself in the topic of
volunteerism during adolescents and my purpose in pursuing this capstone project. I will then
describe 3 profound experiences that have encouraged me to conduct an autoethanography about

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volunteerism. I will provide a brief literature review on the topic in order to demonstrate the
sound evidence that volunteerism within the adolescent population may in fact promote maturity,
organizational skills, benevolence, and a host of other skills and qualities that contribute to the
development of the individual. Despite emphasizing the merits of volunteerism, I have suggested
several ways to overcome some of the obstacles that people face as pertaining to pursuing
volunteer work. I have then chosen to write about how this topic will be implicated in my
teaching and how I believe my students will be affected by the influence that volunteerism has
had in my life. This is followed by a number of different projects I would like to develop as I
begin teaching. For example, initiating a health promotion team or a cooking club that donates to
food banks would be two ways to engage students with their community in selfless and
productive ways. Finally, I conclude by suggesting a few areas within the theme of volunteerism
that deserve more attention.
RATIONALE
Some studies have found positive lifestyle changes in students lives when they adopted
altruistic habits (Chou, 1998, p. 195). Further investigation of the benefits of volunteering may
induce an influx in terms of participant enrollment, and potentially a change in the way these
opportunities are advertised. This is not to say that I am striving to make adolescents subscribe
to volunteerism, but rather, I intend to communicate how beneficial participating in volunteer
work has been in my development as a young adult. I advocate community service because
devoting time to different volunteer organizations has impacted my behavior as well as my
understanding of how society functions. If students are exposed to volunteer projects during
high school, they may begin to develop knowledge that would typically be learned during
adulthood: for example, social responsibility and awareness of workforce opportunities.

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Ultimately, this self-study is intended to be a vehicle that propagates the transformative influence
that volunteerism can have in the lives of high school students.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this capstone project is to express how volunteerism can be an integral
aspect in the developing lives of adolescents. By doing so, I wish to unveil from my philosophy
of teaching that a students personal development throughout his/her high school experience is
more important than any piece of content knowledge learnt in the classroom. I wish to
communicate the growth I experienced with the hope of inspiring others to commit selfless acts
of volunteerism. That being said, there will be an overarching autoethonographical component to
my capstone research project. This means that I will be exploring the implications my
experiences have had on my professional development as a teacher. In other words, I will be
making connections between my involvement in volunteerism and how this has emerged as an
integral aspect in my mission as a teacher. So as to not impose my bias, I will also take this
opportunity to criticize volunteerism and comment on some of the reasons why not everyone can
invest their time into acts of community service.
SITUATING THE RESEARCHER
Personal Involvement: Volunteering in Church
As a teenager, I was primarily focused on achieving good grades in school and sustaining
healthy relationships with my friends and family. I was not concerned with what occurred
outside the perimeter of my social and academic life. This barrier was broken when I was asked
to volunteer in church. At first, I was fearful of the commitment I was making when I accepted
to assist the priest during mass. As part of this experience, I read passages from the Bible and
gave Communion to the people that filled the church. I was not volunteering to fulfill any

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religious obligations. My recent encounter with scientific concepts had made me question my
religious beliefs. I volunteered because I wanted to understand why people gathered in church to
worship. From volunteering in church for two years, I learned that people are able to awaken a
part of their spiritual lives that cannot be stimulated alternatively. Volunteering in church
instilled a greater sense of calmness in me that I normally could not find elsewhere. I realize that
I was affecting others because of my presence: I was approached on several occasions by
members of the church who appreciated the liveliness I exuded while reading biblical discourses.
Volunteering in church allowed me to isolate and minimize the daily challenges I faced by
forcing me to view my life in a more objective and less emotionally-involved perspective. It also
helped me realize that the academically and socially-related problems in my life were
incomparable to the health-related ailments the churchgoers I shared my time with on Sundays
were experiencing. As such, humility and coping skills were two important benefits I
experienced from devoting my time to the activities I engaged in during mass.
Personal Involvement: Volunteering in a Hospital
After seeing how enlightening it was to volunteer in church, I applied to become a
volunteer in the pediatric and geriatric wards at de Maisonneuve Hospital. My willingness to
learn, however, was not my only incentive; I sought to experience the health sector due to my
aspirations to someday work in a hospital. I began my venture in the pediatrics department.
There, I visited and entertained children that were recovering from influenza, jaundice,
salmonellosis, and other conditions that confined them to hospital beds. At times, I found it
difficult to witness a child suffering. The issue of exposing myself to germs did not faze me; I
was always motivated to make the children I spent time with happy, or at the very least, make
their stay at the hospital more pleasant. Seeing the fragility of patients in the pediatrics

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department made me realize that, once again, health is indisputably one of the most important
factors in life. I realized how much I took my own health for granted and how fortunate I was to
be able to function without being limited to a hospital bed. In the geriatric ward, I experienced a
different spectrum of interactions. The patients I interacted with were diagnosed with psychiatric
conditions such as dementia, Alzheimers, schizophrenia, Tourettes, and bipolar disorder. I was
faced with residents who were sometimes violent, silent, confused, or depressed. I had no prior
training that would enable me to react appropriately to the emotionally handicapped patients. I
was forced to judge what comportment I needed to adopt in different situations. For instance, I
spent many hours in silence with patients because I was aware that not all patients required
dialogue to remedy their loneliness; they merely needed my presence. Socially, I learned that
every individual requires something different from their neighbor. Some people need thoughtful
advice from another human being; others need a person who can listen to them or be in
proximity to them. Professionally, I learned that I wanted to continue working in the health
sector. I began working in a pharmacy as an assistant pharmacist and used the communication
skills I obtained in hospitals to serve the patients who visited the pharmacy. Therefore, my
volunteering experiences in hospitals allowed me to uncover a part of the workforce that
resonated with me.
Personal Involvement: Volunteering in a Research Laboratory
The final year of high school brought me to a cross-road: one path leading to a three-year
biomedical research program in college, and the other a prelude to expanding my scientific
knowledge in university. I chose to volunteer in an immunology research lab that resembled the
biomedical program I was considering. In the lab, I helped a Masters student execute scientific
techniques such as cloning DNA in mice. This volunteer experience made me aware that I did

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not want to limit my vocation to laboratory research. Although I did not see myself permanently
working in a laboratory, I was fascinated by the knowledge I had obtained. Therefore,
volunteering in a research laboratory helped me identify whether I wanted to continue my
education into university or to enroll in a professional college program. By working in a
research setting, I was able to make important connections between my volunteering
experiences. At the church and in the geriatrics and pediatrics departments of a hospital, I drew
happiness from working with people. In the immunology research laboratory, I drew satisfaction
from working alongside one graduate student to execute techniques that were anchored in
profound and enlightening scientific wisdom. The conglomeration of my volunteering
experiences has culminated in my realization that I am passionate about interacting with people
and with science. This is what led me to apply to the Masters of Arts in Teaching and Learning
graduate program at McGill University following my Bachelor degree in Biochemistry. Because
of the ways I volunteered my time, I have arrived at this juncture: aspiring to become a chemistry
teacher.
LITERATURE REVIEW OF VOLUNTEERISM
The following literature review is meant to communicate the numerous lenses through
which volunteering during adolescents has been studied. The research surrounding volunteerism
has largely focused on the positive effects for the volunteer and those who the altruistic deed is
done for. I have chosen to first look at how volunteerism has been defined, the personal and
social benefits of volunteerism, the differences between adult and adolescent volunteers,
relationships between volunteerism and age, gender, household income, and frequency of
participation in volunteer activities, the disagreements within the literature, and volunteerism in
Canada. Besides presenting these dimensions of the literature, I have also to bring to light some

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of the negative aspects of volunteerism. I have presented how detrimental mandatory

volunteerism could be on students, as well as the barriers to becoming a volunteer and the
speculative nature of the conclusions drawn from qualitative research about volunteerism.
Early research into volunteerism investigated the many ways in which volunteer work is
defined. A number of researchers in this field recognize volunteerism by the idea of not
anticipating monetary compensation for helping others (Cnaan et al, 2006; Wilson & Musick,
1999). Hereafter, I will use the term volunteerism with the understanding that this implies the
notion of altruistic devotion of ones time towards non-monetary activities.
Many researchers have focused their investigations on the personal and social benefits of
participating in volunteer activities. Some studies have strictly assessed the personal dimensions
and have found that volunteering improves happiness, life satisfaction, self-esteem, sense of
control over life, physical health, and depression (Thoits & Hewitt, 2001, p. 115). Moreover,
Thoits and Hewitt found that the opposite is also true: that the six aforementioned components of
well-being increase an individuals willingness to conduct additional community service. This
suggests that there exists a feedback loop wherein well-being breeds a willingness to volunteer
and vice versa.
Other studies have aimed to determine the social effects of volunteerism. For instance,
Wilson & Musick (1999) suggested that volunteers were more likely to obtain jobs because of
the pro-social behaviors associated with volunteerism and because of the job opportunities
individuals were exposed to while volunteering. In other words, individuals who do community
service are more likely to develop the professional and social skills that help in obtaining a job,
but are also more likely to discover a field which they resonate with while volunteering.
Additionally, Hart, Youniss, and Atkins (2007) found a positive correlation between the

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frequency of participation in community service and the practice of civic duties such as voting in
elections and taking care of the environment. This suggests that besides the transparent benefits
of conducting community service, there are much broader long-term implication to the volunteer
and to society.
Thus far, much of the literature has addressed older adult volunteers even though
teenage volunteers are an important source of help, especially for religious organizations, youth
development, environmental and recreational organizations, schools, and, on a more informal
basis, neighbors, friends, and relatives (Sundeen & Raskoff, 1994, p 383). These articles failed
to establish whether the conclusions drawn were applicable to younger individuals (MorrowHowell, Kinnevy, & Mann, 1999). There are, however, discourses that have attempted to
aggregate the benefits of volunteering for both youth and adult populations. For instance,
Piliavin et al (2003) suggested that volunteerism can help manage some of the problems that
adolescents and the elderly have in common: issues regarding integration into society and social
alienation. In terms of issues that are strictly experienced by adolescents, Piliavin et al (2003)
remarked that adolescents are at the preliminary stages of self-discovery and their development
of social behaviours. Their lack of experience and search for societal inclusion led the authors to
suggest that adolescents greatly benefit from what they learn from community service in terms of
social responsibility and self-discovery. Additionally, the authors noted that a willingness to
devote time towards the selfless deeds that are inherent in community service led to positive
results in terms of adolescents professional, social, and personal development (Piliavin et al,
2003). Although the implications of these developmental stages are difficult to be measured
quantitatively, the outcomes of community service suggest that there is a lot to be gained from
volunteering.

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Kee-Lee Chou (1998) was one of the first researchers to conduct a largely quantitative
study pertaining to volunteer work. Chou (1998) investigated the correlations between scores on
the Chinese Self-Reported Altruistic Behaviour (C-SRA) scale and the following predictor
variables age, sex, education level, household income, frequency of participation in volunteer
activities, number of siblings, and single-parent household. He determined that there was no
correlation between gender and scores on the C-SRA scale. This suggests that both boys and
girls experience similar benefits from participating in community service. On the other hand,
Chou (1998) found that there was a significant relationship between household income, singleparent household, and frequency of participation. There most significant association in Chous
(1998) study was between age and altruism. He found that older students were more likely to
participate and reap the benefits of volunteerism than were younger individuals. This is
important in the realization that volunteering cannot be forced upon students because they risk
not understanding why there are devoting their time to non-profit activities. Rather, volunteering
can be valuable to those students who willingly apply themselves and who understand what they
are gaining from community service.
Sundeen & Raskoffs (1994) research reinforce the positive correlation between age and
altruism. Additionally, the authors placed an emphasis on the academic implications of
volunteerism in adolescents. They explain that there exists a correlation between age, altruism,
and professional development in that students who are older and more academically oriented
may be anticipating application to college where community service activities are presumed to
be valued in the admissions process (p. 397). This suggests an association between Grade Point
Average (GPA) and adolescents who participate in community service. Sundeen & Raskoffs
(1994) observations can easily be misinterpreted in that participation in volunteer activities does

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not necessarily result in higher GPAs. It is important to note that the relationship between
adolescents and their intrinsic motivation, the career aspirations, their study habits, and their
GPA is far more complex than any research study can predict. In other words, there are far too
many variables to make an absolute statement regarding how volunteering affects intellect and
vice versa.
The complexity of drawing any meaningful conclusions from these studies can be seen in
the contradictions that have been witnessed in the literature. For instance, Chous observation
pertaining to gender differences in volunteerism is contradictory to the research conducted by
Hamilton & Fenzel (1988), which found that [g]irls gained more than boys in terms of social
responsibility (p 65). This contradiction in the literature can be attributed to the differences in
experimental conditions used by the two groups. One study was conducted in China (Chou,
1998) and the other in the United States (Hamilton & Fenzel, 1988). Therefore, the differences
in socio-cultural ideologies may have influenced the authors findings. Moreover, one study
involved 1,105 adolescents (Chou, 1998) and the other involved 44 adolescents (Hamilton &
Fenzel, 1988). This does not necessarily mean that the findings of Hamilton and Fenzel are
false, although, having a lager sample size could have increased the credibility of their
conclusions. I could comment on other difference in conditions under which these two studies
were conducted, such as socioeconomic status, political beliefs, and methods of collecting data;
however, the purpose of making this comparison is to establish that research in this field is
highly partial to a number of experimental determinants.
In Canada, finding volunteers has not been an issue considering that as governments
redefine and reduce their roles in the provision of public services, the demand for the services
that charitable and voluntary organizations provide is increasing (Hall, 2001, p. 1). In 2010,

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Statistics Canada revealed that more than 13.1 million people, or 47% of the population,
volunteered their time through a group or organization in the Canada Survey of Giving,
Volunteering, and Participating (CSGVP). This equates to nearly 2.1 billion hours in 2010, the
equivalent of close to 1.1 million full-time jobs (Statistics Canada, 2010). The magnitude of
these statistics fosters great optimism in the field of volunteerism. One piece of information that
is missing from these statistics is any qualitative data that indicates how valuable all these
volunteer hours were in the lives of the individuals that participated. After all, we should not
only be interested in the number of volunteers, but what the volunteers learned about themselves
and how their experience contributed to their development as human beings.
Considering the praise that volunteerism receives in developing well-rounded students, it
is difficult to imagine any problems being involved in community service. However, there are
downfalls to volunteering, particularly with schools enforcing mandatory volunteerism. In many
schools, students that do not complete a certain number of volunteering hours by the end of the
year are not permitted to graduate (Habib, 2003). As previously discussed, not having completed
a certain number of volunteer hours does not imply that an individual is not intelligent.
Therefore, it is against the very nature of volunteerism to demand students to immerse
themselves in community service. Due to the strict implementations of these schools, it is
possible that students may not be as engaged as they would be if volunteering was optional.
Being altruistic cannot be imposed; it can only be inspired.
Stukas, Snyder, and Clary (1999) elaborate on this issue by suggesting that mandatory
volunteer work can be detrimental to students perceptions of community service, thereby
making them less likely to search for volunteering opportunities. This is reflective in the finding
that the movement to enforce community service has eliminated an otherwise positive relation

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between prior volunteer experience and future intentions to volunteer (Stukas et al, 1999, p. 59).
Other issues that are raised pertain to economic issues that volunteers may be faced with
(Sundeen & Raskoff, 1994). Some individuals are required to search for employment in order to
support their low-income family. Other people might need to find monetary work to tend to a
family member who is ill and takes costly medications. Sometimes, the aspiring volunteer does
not have access to a vehicle, therefore, cannot travel to the place wherein they intend to dedicate
their time. These are only some of the barriers the literature has found pertaining to the struggles
that individuals may face when considering the option of becoming a volunteer.
As we have seen, the benefits of volunteering are usually implicit and the rewards of
participating in non-monetary activities are not always apparent to the volunteer. Wilson &
Musick (1999) express that few people are aware that devoting time to community service means
that less time is spent on potential anti-social behaviors (p 149). This idea is reflected in the
understanding that volunteering makes us less likely to engage in socially pathological
behavior, such as vandalism, and less likely to prey on other people and engage in selfdestructive behavior (Wilson & Musick, 1999, p 149). One reason why there is an inverse
relationship between volunteerism and antisocial behaviour is that applying oneself altruistically
can cause a volunteer to realize the productivity of prosocial behavior and the destruction
spawned by delinquent behavior. Granted, it is not possible to predict whether or not kids who
volunteer would commit delinquent deeds if they were not volunteering. Alternatively, we
cannot claim that students who display antisocial behaviors would experience any profound
changes after having dedicated their time towards helping others or their community.
Wilson and Musicks suggestion of an inverse relationship between volunteerism and
anti-social behaviour sheds light on how difficult it is to measure what community service does

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for the volunteer. Indeed, much of the literature on this topic considers qualitative data that is
obtained from people who have been shaped by different volunteering experiences ((Chou, 1998;
Cnaan et al, 2006; Stukas et al, 1999). This means that many of the conclusions that are drawn
from studies that analyse volunteerism involve some speculation and deductive reasoning.
Considering the complex nature of volunteerism, not being able to isolate variables, and not
being able to observe anything other than relationships between variables, qualitative studies are
arguable more appropriate to make any inferences. Regardless, the selflessness of becoming a
volunteer has almost unanimously shown to have positive effects. It seems appropriate then to
suggest that [i]f volunteering can be shown to be good for you, perhaps more people will do it
(Wilson & Musick, 1999, p 168).
The above review on the literature of volunteerism during adolescence has showcased
how beneficial volunteer work can be to adolescents. I have also displayed that volunteering may
not be feasible in every students life.
OVERCOMING OBSTACLES
Some of the literature points out the different factors that may discourage or prevent
adolescents from participating in volunteer work. The possibility of pursuing volunteer work for
some individuals might be unreasonably difficult because of responsibilities, disabilities, or
insufficient time. Volunteerism, by definition, is not obligatory and is only suggested for the
reasons of being intrinsically valuable to the volunteer and extrinsically beneficial to those who
the volunteering is done for. If either of these become compromised at any time, volunteering
should not take place for the best interest of the volunteer and the benefactors. For instance, if
investing myself in volunteerism is compromising my performance at school, I must try to
understand that my success in school is more of a priority than is volunteering.

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The following table contains certain obstacles that may hinder individuals from
volunteering their time towards non-profit activities. It is important to note that this list is not
exhaustive and that the suggested solutions for each obstacle are not suggesting that each
obstacle can actually be overcome. Instead, this table displays the obstacles that I believe are
most prominent in the general population. This table also contains some obstacles that I faced
when I was an adolescent and the different ways I was able to circumvent the different
complications that impeded me from investing myself in volunteer work. Most notably, finding
enough time to volunteer, finding opportunities that were within proximity to my home, and the
unfortunate reality that I would not be compensated for my devotion were three of the most
substantial issues I had with investing myself in non-profit activities. For those who are facing
some of the same obstacles that I did when I was younger, I hope that my insights will be
serviceable.

Table 1. Obstacles that Hinder Adolescents from Participating in Volunteer Work and the
Suggested Solutions to Overcome These Obstacles

Obstacles
Lack of time

Lack of
advertisement

Proximity

Suggested Solutions
-

Postponing volunteer work until schedule becomes less charged

Reorganizing daily tasks to accommodate volunteer activities

Use an agenda to find openings in your schedule

Ask guidance counsellor or other administrators and staff

Ask other students what they have done for volunteer work

Use resources at your disposal (internet, phonebook, magazines

etc.)

Visit the establishments wherein you wish to volunteer

Search for alternative places to volunteer

Ask parents or other family members for lifts

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Unpaid work

Search for ways to contribute without being physically present

Public transportation

Do it for others

Do it for yourself

Search for other intrinsic motivation

Do it with a friend

Ask the organization if it has ways to accommodate the

Physical
disability

Find a way to volunteer that does not implicate the disability

Age of volunteer

Search for alternative places to volunteer

particular disability

Once again, it is crucial to emphasize that many of these obstacles are valid reasons for not being
able to volunteer. The suggested solutions have been proposed to provide students who are
having difficulties overcoming these obstacles with several potential solutions. Otherwise, any
of the listed obstacles are valid reasons for why a student would not be able to partake in
volunteer work.
IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHING
As an educator, I do not wish to simply transfer knowledge to my students. Having my
students achieve their academic goals and do well in standardized tests is important; however, I
do not believe that this ought to be the objective of any teacher. Instead, I wish to instill in my
students the motivation they need to apply themselves wholeheartedly in whatever they choose
to do outside of school. I will not achieve this by advocating and advertising volunteer work and
its benefits; students might not resonate with the idea of volunteerism as I do. Rather, I will give
students some incentive by sharing my story with them. I will tell students about my high school
experience and how it was made to be fulfilling by the various ways I invested my time. I want
them to realize that school is not solely a place for studying different subjects, writing tests, and

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moving on to the next stage in the academic realm; I want them to realize that school is a place
where students develop personally, socially, and professionally.
As a science educator, I have the responsibility of not only authenticating science
education for the purpose of engaging students with scientific phenomena and scientific culture, I
also feel that students ought to know how they can pursue science in their future endeavors. I
will incorporate this into my teaching when possible. For instance, in a unit pertaining to
concentration of dissolved solids in liquids, I may choose to relate the topic to scientists who
work in industry to find the acceptable level of metals present in water reservoirs. In another
instance, I can relate a module about the nervous system to medicine and how certain doctors are
responsible for monitoring and alleviating neurodegenerative disorders that many people suffer
from. As such, I will be creating connections between curricular content and societal aspects
related to the workforce. Concerning volunteerism, I will attempt to attain brochures or
volunteering advertisements from the different institutions and organizations that are relevant to
the material I teach. Despite that not all students will be interested in earning careers in domains
like medicine, research & development, or quality assurance, I feel like it is important that I
reveal those possibilities to my students.
Finally, as an employee of the school, I believe that a good way of communicating the
benefits of volunteer work is through different extracurricular programs. Forming a group that
visits retirement homes, for example, would be one way to initiate volunteerism. As a supervisor
of this activity, I would take the time to explain the humility and selflessness displayed when
devoting oneself to spending time with those who have contributed to society in previous
generations. Moreover, the happiness that the students would bring the elderly people that they
spend time with would be unmeasurable. Visiting retirement homes may not be the most

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appealing activity for students to engage in though. In other words, they might shy away from
participating in this activity because they do not see any intrinsic value or personal gain to
volunteering their time.
PROJECTS I WOULD LIKE TO BEGIN
There are several volunteer groups that I feel students would resonate with. One of the
ideas that may be popular with students is a cooking club. The rationale behind this
extracurricular group would be to foster a sense of self-reliance and experimentation among the
students that partake. My experiences within high schools have revealed to me that many
students opt for consuming foods at fast-food restaurants, which may eventually become costly.
Therefore, the long-term goal would be for students to begin preparing their own meals from the
different recipes we would be experimenting with in the extracurricular cooking group. The
volunteerism aspect of this group becomes apparent when considering that much of the food that
the students would be making will be donated to homeless shelters and food banks. As such,
students will learn how to cook while giving what they create to people who cannot afford food.
In terms of location, I see myself using the schools cafeteria to deliver the cooking sessions. In
terms of funding, I would hope that the school is willing to subsidize such an activity and that the
parents of the students are also willing to contribute a small sum for the cost of ingredients. I
would recruit students by either posting advertisements in the school or by hosting a lecture
pertaining to the chemistry of cooking. For schools who have programs wherein students must
complete a certain number of volunteer hours to graduate, the hours devoted to this cooking club
would be used to satisfy the programs volunteer requirements.
From my experiences within high school settings, I have noticed a large concentration of
students who are artistically inclined. That being said, I believe that another popular idea for a

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volunteering group would be one that is involved in beautifying the school. This would involve
painting and decorating classrooms, hallways, lockers, washrooms, and the gymnasiums of the
school wherein I would initiate this extracurricular activity. This would be done in the same
spirit as any other volunteer activity; in the spirit of devoting ones time to contributing
something significant to society. Students who wish to contribute something more elaborate to
the aesthetics of the school would be invited to submit their ideas to the administration before
applying their creativity. In terms of funding, I believe that the school that this service is being
provided to would be willing to supply the paint and equipment to the students.
A more project-based idea for volunteer work would be to form a club dedicated towards
spreading awareness of substance abuse in adolescents. Students who volunteer their time
towards this group would be involved in creating brochures, posters, commercials, and other
impactful media. These media would be used to inform both students and parents of the types,
causes and effects of substance abuse and the frequency and risk of it occurring in the youth
population. The intent of this group would be to persuade current substance abusers to reconsider
their unhealthy habits and also to deter those who may eventually succumb to substance abuse.
The students who devote themselves to this volunteer work will benefit from the knowledge they
obtain as they research the statistics and facts associated with this topic. Moreover, I would make
these students realize that what they are doing may in fact make a significant difference in the
minds of many people. In terms of funding, I or another coordinator of this volunteer group
could find an abundance of cheap materials at most stores that carry art supplies.
FUTURE RESEARCH IN THE FIELD
Promoting volunteerism is an area that I believe requires more attention. Many students
may be looking for institutions wherein they can help out; however, these opportunities are

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missed because of lack of publicity. In the past, [n]ewspapers and popular magazines have
carried numerous articles describing youth service projects, that were able to keep the idea of
volunteerism alive in society (Sundeen & Roskoff, 1994, p 383). Future research should address
modern methods that can be used to make students aware of different volunteering opportunities
that are offered in local areas: such as advertisements projected through social media or
television. The popularity of social media would be particularly useful in recruiting volunteers.
A website like Facebook, which is the second most visited website in the world (Alexa Internet
Inc., 2014), could be used as a means to communicate the benefits of volunteering, as well as the
centres in which an individual can volunteer. The objective of advertising different volunteering
activities is not to increase the popularity of non-profit activities. Rather, such a pursuit is to
encourage individuals to invest themselves in experiences that are valuable to ones personal,
social, and professional development.
There are other areas in this field that I believe have not been explored sufficiently by
researchers. It would be interesting to gain further insight into the impact of students
professional aspirations on their perceptions of the importance of volunteering. Do students that
strive to become doctors volunteer more often than students that want to become lawyers or
writers? If so, is it because only certain professions demand that applicants have some sort of
volunteering experience?

That being said, do students volunteer because they thrive from

helping people in society? Or rather, do students volunteer simply to build a curriculum vitae
that would be impressive to employers and schools they wish to apply to? How does the latter
affect students perceptions of wanting to help others? These questions are complicated in nature
and cannot be answered without extensive research into individual values and virtues.
Regardless of the complexities of conducting research in this field and the uncertainty behind the

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causal variables of altruistic deeds, it is recognized that volunteerism is a lifestyle that can
benefit an individuals life in unmeasurable ways.
LIMITATIONS
Despite how reflecting upon my experience with volunteer work has allowed me to see
how I can contribute to my students learning outside of the classroom, there are some
limitations of conducting a self-study exclusively. One of the limitations is that a self-study does
not assess whether or not volunteerism is prominent in my immediate community. A
qualitative/quantitative research project that addresses the attitudes students have towards
volunteer work could have better informed my approach to encouraging volunteerism upon entry
into the teaching profession. Moreover, the practice of collecting and analyzing data during such
a project would allow me to exercise some of the skills that I believe are directly transferable to
the classroom, such as classroom assessment.
Another shortcoming of conducting a self-study on the topic of volunteer work is that it
may not address the issues that prevent volunteer work from happening adequately. Therefore, it
would have been interesting to see, from the students perspective, what some of the more
prominent reasons are for being incapable to volunteer. I have reported on those issues that I
have seen and imagined could hinder students from becoming volunteers; however, I have not
reached out to the students directly. Upon having my own classroom, I may be better positioned
to understand the reality of volunteerism from the vantage point of my students.
CONCLUSION
Exploring my experiences to inform my professional development has given me the
opportunity to reflect on my mission as a teacher. Beyond the importance of helping my students

Nasiek 22

learn about scientific phenomena and how these are important in daily occurrences, I wish to see
them undergo profound changes that shape them as young adults. One way in which I intend to
inspire such change is by being authentic with my students and communicating with them the
experiences that have transformed my life; the volunteering experiences wherein I gained
valuable insights into myself and my community. I do not want to limit myself to reciting past
experiences and teaching my students the morals of my stories. Rather, I wish to integrate the
humanity and altruism that I am capable of displaying into my teaching and the projects I wish to
begin within the school community. This reflection has altered my perception of a teacher being
primarily responsible for delivering content effectively. A successful teacher is not just a person
who helps students pass school. Rather, a successful teacher is a person who is able to influence
students in the broader contexts of life.

Nasiek 23

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