St. Johns County Schools Awarding of Service Hours in Secondary Schools
According to the district’s Student Progression Plan, “the school principal (or designee) is responsible for approving specific volunteer activities.” At the end of the year when many students are presenting their community service/volunteer hours for the Bright Futures Scholarship Program and similar programs*, many questions arise across the district about what activities are considered appropriate. Several years ago, the district provided two items to each school: (1) a list to use as a guideline in
determining whether an activity should count for community service/volunteer hours (2) a definition of two classes of community service/volunteer activities: Community Service and Service Learning. Both qualify for community service/volunteer hours. The list, documentation requirements and definition follow:
List • Service to a governmental agency • Service to a not-for-profit local, national or international organization • Service to a school or school organization ( if truly voluntary and not the expectation of
a club, etc.) • Service to a religious organization • Other as approved by the principal (or designee)
Documentation All service/volunteer activities should be documented on the letterhead of the organization and presented to the appropriate person designated at each school. As was stated above, the principal (or designee) is responsible for approval of submitted community service/volunteer hours.
Definitions Community Service Student community service is defined as community service activities that are non-curriculum-based and are recognized by and/or arranged through the school. The community service: • Generally does not include explicit learning objectives or organized reflection or critical analysis activities • May include activities that take place off of school grounds or may happen primarily within the school • May not be earned for service required as part of a court action Community service activities may be
carried out as school-wide events, separately organized school programs, or projects conducted by school-sponsored clubs (e.g., Girls/Boys Clubs, National Honor Society). Examples of service activities could include cleaning up a local park, visiting the elderly, or collecting and distributing food to those in need. Service-Learning Service learning is defined as curriculum-based community service that integrates classroom instruction with community service activities.
The service must: • Be organized in relation to an academic course or curriculum • Have clearly stated learning objectives • Address real community needs in a sustained manner over a period of time • Assist students in drawing lessons from the service through regularly scheduled, organized reflection or critical analysis activities, such as classroom discussions, presentations, or directed writing. Example of service-learning: Students in a science class studying the environment help preserve the natural habitat of animals living at a local lake. Through classroom studies, the students learn about the environment. The students keep the area around the lake clean, post signs providing information to the public, and study soil and water composition as well as the impact of industrial development on wildlife.
Throughout the project, students write about their experiences in journals and participate in class discussions about the project and its effect on their lives and the local community.
Service/volunteer activities that lead to personal gain in the form of awards - merchandise, course credit, money - are considered inappropriate.
* Students may begin to accumulate service hours upon the completion of grade 8 – throughout the summer following grade 8 and in the year(s) to follow.
|
