volunteer summary

volunteer summary

Volunteer has a large economic impact on society. They are an important part of a healthy economy.  Volunteers work in many sectors of society and with them society would experience many problems.  Volunteering in many societies is encouraged but volunteers need to be appreciated, and their efforts sincere.  Finally, volunteers should know what they are doing and not expect to get training on the job.  People who decide to volunteer in developing countries need to be humble and learn before going abroad.

volunteer4

Part 4= Volunteering

Helping others is important and thought of by society as the right

thing to do.  But if you are told to help someone, or pressured to

help someone, is it good?  If your behavior is insincere, and your

help doesn't isn't really appreciated, then how can it be good?

Volunteering is important in many cultures.  It has been important for

generations in many parts of Asia and is sometimes connected with

religious beliefs.  In Buddhist Cambodia for example, the village

elders teach their children to help others with a sincere heart and

without any payment or benefit.

Also, in China, people feel their community is based on family and

those personal connections, which form through acts of kindness.

In Indonesia, at the village level, people help each other

automatically in a system of mutual aid.  If something needs doing,

the entire community takes part.

In Vietnam, where people rely heavily on traditional farming methods,

folk songs and stories talk about the necessity for volunteering to

survive the labor shortages and unpredictable weather conditions.

In many countries, volunteering is compulsory but many people find it

a rewarding experience and undertake it willingly.  But these

societies mentioned above are traditional societies and people feel

rewarded because they are appreciated. In other words, their contribution is

meaningful.  The people they help belong to their community.

Questions
-According to the article, what is one of the main problems with volunteering?

1.    According to the article, what is a traditional activity in some Asian cultures?

What do you think are the benefits of helping strangers?

2.     Do you feel a sense of belonging to your local community?

3.    Does your community encourage volunteering?

4.    If everyone volunteered, no one would get paid.

volunteer3

Part 3 –  When you volunteer expect to learn and research before you can help.

Many organizations send volunteers to developing countries such as Cambodia and Laos for so called ‘development work.’ These volunteers are recruited by agencies at home and typically the volunteers do not have the expertise required to work.  Moreover, they don’t have local knowledge.   Why do organizations send volunteers abroad to provide a service when in fact they are learning a service?  Quite often these people are not skilled at what they do and would never be employed in their own country, says Daniela Papi.  “You have to learn before you can help (or you’ll cause more harm than good.”

For example; “Orphanages in Cambodia use their kids to entertain tourists while more than half of these kids have parents.”   It is the tourism that is keeping them in orphanages.  They end up homeless as a result of the so-called volunteer program that trains kids to perform. 

“Development work is not easy and to say anyone can just come and do it is nuts.  She calls this sympathy tourism, feeling pity toward others

Questions

1.    According the article, what is wrong with development work?

2.     According the article,  what is happening with kids in Cambodia?

3.    According the article, would the majority of volunteers gets jobs at home?

4.    According the article,  what should volunteers do before volunteering?

volunteer2

Part 2 – There are so many ways to volunteer

Volunteers have an enormous impact on the health and well-being of communities worldwide. Think of all the ways that volunteers make a difference in day-to-day life:

         Volunteers deliver critical services—from serving as volunteer fire fighters or participating in search and rescue, to delivering meals to homebound seniors or homeless youth, to manning the phone lines at domestic violence and sexual assault centers.

         Volunteers help to keep our neighborhoods, streets, parks, rivers, green spaces, and water clean and safe for everyone.

         Volunteers tutor, teach, mentor, coach, and support young people with everything from math homework to dealing with personal crises to football and soccer tourneys.

         Volunteers walk dogs, pet cats, clean cages, help with adoptions and feedings, and contribute veterinary expertise to organizations like animal shelters and wildlife rehabilitation centers.

         Volunteers educate the public on health and safety; doctors and nurses donate time and medical knowledge to free clinics and natural/civil disaster areas worldwide.

         Volunteers take tickets at film centers and performing arts events, lead tours at museums and historical societies, and ensure that arts and cultural festivals—from small-scale gatherings to massive multi-stage concerts—run smoothly.

         Volunteers build houses and schools, dig wells, and repair infrastructure around the globe.

Questions

1.    Give an example of critical services.

2.     How do volunteers help wild animals?  In what way?

3.    Give an example of how volunteers educate the public?

4.    According the article, what kind of an impact do volunteers have?

volunteer1

1. News Article – benefiting the economy

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Volunteering has a much larger impact on society than most people think, according to one researcher.

Each year, nearly 1 billion people are engaged in volunteering worldwide. Some countries volunteer much more than others.

There are three types of value that volunteering creates: economic, private and social.

Economic value is the easiest to understand: when volunteers give up their time to paint a building or feed the homeless, there is economic value in the output they are producing. How much would we need to pay for these jobs to be done, if there were no volunteers?

Economists agree that volunteer work is equivalent to 1.5% of GDP in the UK.   

Questions –

1.    According the article does volunteering benefit society?

2.     According the article how many people volunteer worldwide every year?

3.    According the article, what percentage of GDP is produced from volunteer work?

4.    According the article, what examples of volunteering were given?

5.     According the article, without volunteer work, what wouldn’t get done?