by Katrina Goode

Created on: April 17, 2008

High school students should be encouraged to volunteer in community service projects but by no means forced. Lets get straight to the facts here. You can not force a teenager to do anything unless they are threatened with juvenile. If you try to force a teenager then they will rebel, refuse, and run. Forcing anything is a wrong turn to take.

Teenagers need to have options, and parents as well as teachers need to offer those options. Instead of forcing a teenager to do volunteer work, explain the benefits. What are the benefits you ask, skill development, the positive that comes with helping others, gaining experience, making new and valuable contacts, building a reputation, and a start for their resume. Volunteer work looks very appealing on a resume and a college application.

A students willingness to help others in need, to put themselves in a position to learn new things with out being paid to do so is a wonderful trait. This is something that if it is taught at a young age it can take them to so many places in life and put them at an advantage when they get to that point of applying for colleges or jobs. If we start forcing high school students to do volunteer work then it is no longer volunteering and loses its appeal to college administrators and potential employers.

The definition of volunteer is: a person who chooses freely to do or offer to do something.
If it is forced then the term volunteer no longer applies to the situation. So how would forcing a high school student to do volunteer work benefit anyone? It wouldn't. It would cause more harm than good. There would be rebellious teens, nothing positive for employers and college administrators to base admission or hiring decisions on. Teens today get the majority of their job experience from volunteering. There are situations where you would go to get a job and the potential employer says, "I am sorry but you do not have enough experience in this Field." You are wondering well if no one will hire me then how do I get the experience.

Volunteer work is the answer. Force teens into the volunteer work and its appeal is gone and it won't be looked at the same. Oh well they were forced to do this. So were the other 500 applicants. What is left to set them apart from anyone else? I believe that trying to force a high school student to do anything is pointless. If you want them to participate in volunteer work then ask them to, don't force them. It won't do anyone any good in the long run.

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