It has been argued that volunteering activities should be compulsory for high school students. This essay partially agrees with this suggestion because, although there are a number of advantages that it has to the students, it also comes with some disadvantages. In this essay, I will discuss the many advantages that come with volunteering together with the drawbacks which students may experience.
Education is commonly seen as the systematic process restricted to an inside of a school in most cases. While, it is true that formal education plays an important role in learning the basic and foundational knowledge and skills in life, it rarely covers the life experiences and other life skills that are learnt outside the classroom setting. And one of the best ways to obtain such skills is through volunteering. By participating in volunteering activities, students get to learn new skills such as; communication skills, teamwork skills, critical thinking skills and leadership skills. For example, due to the nature of volunteer work, interacting with other people is often necessary for volunteers. And this exposure usually requires acquisition of efficient spoken and written communication skills to convey information clearly, therefore this enables volunteers to improve their communication skills.
However, there are still some disadvantages which are experienced by students even with all the benefits mentioned above. Students in high school are already pressured with academic responsibilities, extracurricular activities and other social engagements. The addition of volunteer work into their busy schedules can lead to overwhelming stress and exhaustion, which would also, most likely lead to a lack of motivation to work and thus, resulting in a poor performance in academics of the students.
To conclude, volunteering is beneficial in many ways but also has its drawbacks. So, when it comes to volunteering, students must learn their limitations, to avoid compromising academic integrity or physical well-being. The advantages and disadvantages of volunteering should be taken into consideration so that students would be able to gain valuable experiences while still keeping up with their academic work.