In understanding the meaning of community service, service learning, and civic engagement we also understand how they are interconnected.  Civic engagement is motivated by the need to improve society as a whole.  Civic service extends beyond volunteerism and other areas of community service or service learning

Scafidi, Sarah

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Motivation and service

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Reason and RespectVolume 3Issue 1 Winter 2007 Article 52-1-2008Motivation and serviceSarah ScafidiRoger Williams UniversityFollow this and additional works at: http://docs.rwu.edu/rrCopyright ©2-1-2008 by the authorsReason and Respect is produced by The Berkeley Electronic Press (bepress).For more information, please contact mwu@rwu.edu.Recommended CitationScafidi, Sarah (2007) "Motivation and service," Reason and Respect: Vol. 3: Iss. 1, Article 5.Available at: http://docs.rwu.edu/rr/vol3/iss1/5RESPECT IMotivation and ServiceSarah Scafidi, Creative Writing '10Theodore Roosevelt once said, "This country will not be a permanently good place for any of us to live in un-less we make it a reasonably good place for all of us to live in." Community service, service learning, and civicengagement are bound together by one common goal to make our society a good place for all. They all aremodes of creating the better society to which Roosevelt alluded. But is there a difference in community ser-vice, service learning, and civic engagement? Community service refers to volunteers and other organizationshelping to better their local community. Service learning involves students learning about their local com-munity as well as developing an enhanced sense of civic responsibility (Bringle). Civic engagement is definedas "individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern" (Carpini). Thedifferences between community service, service learning, and civic engagement lie in the motivation behindservICe.Community service is motivated by the need to help others on the local level. Take, for instance, thishypothetical, but recognizable case: Everyday on her way to school Lauren passes by men and women livingon the street. She knows that most people ignore their haggard faces and worn out clothes. She watches asthey beg for spare change. She sees the quiet desperation in their eyes. Every day her heart breaks a little as shepasses by. She volunteers at a local soup kitchen every Saturday to help those who are less fortunate than her.She will never be one of those people who ignores the problems in front of her. She understands that in orderto better her community, she must give some of her time to help others.Most citizens engage in community service at some point in their lives. For some, it is as simple asdonating food to a homeless shelter or clothing to a local Salvation Army. Others become more involved andvolunteer at soup kitchens or help their elderly neighbor paint their house. Although Lauren's story is hypo-thetical, she represents the motivation behind community service. Lauren saw a problem in her communityand she did her best to help those less fortunate. Although her effortS will not resolve the entire problem ofpoverty and homelessness, they will help to improve the lives of a few people within her community.Service learning stems from the need for community service, but the motivation for service learning is morecomplex. According to the National Service Learning Clearinghouse, service learning "links to academiccontent and standards" as well as being "reciprocal in nature, benefiting both the community and the serviceproviders by combining a service experience with a learning experience" ("Service Learning Is"). The RogerWilliams University Honors Program adheres to these standards, requiring junior honors students to per-form a service project. The students are involved at every level of the service because they must plan as well asimplement their projects.In contrast with Lauren's hypothetical situation, the RWU honors service project involves a lot more.Although both are important for the betterment of the community, the Honors Program participants discoverthe differences between a citizen and an engaged citizen. Their projects apply classroom experiences to theoutside world. It provides more educational depth and creates well-rounded students. Although Lauren mayunderstand the need for service in her community, the Honors Program participants learn specifically the bestways to aid society as well as the most efficient way to implement their plans.Civic engagement is motivated by the need to improve society as a whole. Civic service extendsbeyond volunteerism and other areas of community service or service learning. Politicians are the best exampleof civic service because they work within the law to improve the lives of their constituents. Average citizenscan be engaged citizens as well. In my American Government and Politics class, we learned about the "atten-tive public" (Magleby et al. 172). According to Government by the People, these people are those who "knowand understand how the government works" (Magleby et al. 172). They vote in most elections as well as keepup with current events. Voting is one activity that American citizens can participate in to stay engaged in so-ciety. The book acknowledges that American society is different than most because democracy allows citizensto have considerable influence on government and society. Peaceful protests, such as those of Rosa Parks andMartin Luther King Jr., are examples of citizens working to change society (Magleby et al. 172). Civic engage-1Scafidi: Motivation and servicePublished by DOCS@RWU, 2007ment remains one of the most powerful tools of change in American politics. Some of the greatest transforma-tions in America have evolved from the voices of just a few engaged citizens.Civic engagement is also important on a global level. Recently, Sir Bob Geldof spoke at Roger Wil-liams University of his continuing service involving poverty around the world. In 1985 Geldof organized LiveAid, a cross-continent concert benefiting famine victims in Mrica. With the help of Bono, he also organizedLive 8 in 2005. Live 8 was a campaign to pressure world leaders to cancel third world debt. One of Geldof'sgreatest gifts is that he engages other citizens as well. He reminds people that there are those who live in con-ditions that most could never imagine. Geldof is an engaged citizen because he refuses to accept the horrors ofpoverty, famine, and disease that most people ignore. He actively works to better the world in which we live.In understanding the meanings of community service, service learning, and civic engagement we alsounderstand how they are all interconnected. Community service provides the preparation needed for contin-ued service learning. Service learning, in turn, teaches students how to become engaged citizens. Furthermore,it is essential to learn about different types of service in order to understand the need for each. Without citi-zens, such as Geldof, working to instill change in our society, it would never improve. Without improvement,our society would cease to exist.Works CitedBringle, R. and Hatcher J. "Definition of Service Learning." APA Online: Civic Engagement and ServiceLearning. 2006. November 10, 2006. http://www.apa.org/ed/slce/civicengagement.html.Carpini, Michael Delli. "Definition of Civic Engagement." APA Online: Civic Engagement and ServiceLearning. 2006. November 10, 2006. http://www.apa.org/ed/slce/civicengagement.html.Magleby, David B. et al. Government by the People. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2006.Roosevelt, Theodore. "Other Quotes." Theodore Roosevelt Association. Chicago, Illinois, June 17, 1912<http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/life/quotes.htm>"Service Learning Is." National Service Learning Clearinghouse. 2001-2004. November 15, 2006.http://www.servicelearning.org/welcome_to _service-learn ing/ service-learning.js/index. p hp#char.2Reason and Respect, Vol. 3 [2007], Iss. 1, Art. 5http://docs.rwu.edu/rr/vol3/iss1/5

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