Lesson 1
Introduction: Why volunteer?
Administrative
CORE LESSONS
Matters
1. Introduction: Why volunteer?
2. Volunteering: Who benefits?
3. Communication & Collaboration:
Effective volunteering & beyond
4. Competence & Congruence: Doing
good well
The relationship
between
Volunteering &
service learning
Volunteering & Service Learning
Service learning:
An educational approach where
students
• learn theories
• volunteer
• reflect to deepen understanding
Volunteering & Service Learning
NUS Educational Philosophy
To help students become
• individuals of well -rounded mind and character;
• constructive and responsible
and
members of a community,
ready to assume leadership and conscious of the impact
of their activities on others
What is volunteering?
The United Nations General Assembly:
Volunteering is “a wide range of activities,
including traditional forms of mutual aid and
self -help, formal service delivery and other
forms of civic participation, undertaken of free
will, for the general public good and where
monetary reward is not the principal
motivating factor”.
What is volunteering?
Volunteering is “any activity in
which time is given freely to
benefit another person, group,
organization, or community.”
(Wilson, 2000)
What is volunteering?
Three ideas about volunteering:
1.An activity
2.Given freely
3.Intended to benefit others
Thought
Activity
Why would
volunteering be an
important
experience for you?
Why does volunteering matter?
Individual level
2. A way of
3. An opportunity
4. Improves
more responsible
moving towards
to learn new skills
employability
citizen
self -actualisation
1. A way to become a
Why does volunteering matter?
Social level
1. Builds social capital
2. Creates trust and solidarity
Thought
Activity
Think about a friend or a family member who
has had volunteering experiences. Recall
conversations you have had with him or her.
What do you think he or she gained from
volunteering?
Evolution of volunteering
Metropolitan YMCA
Singapore: 50 years in
the people business
(1946 -1996), 1996, Tan.,
P. (Ed)
Metropolitan YMCA Singapore: 50
years in the people business (1946
1996), 1996, Tan., P. (Ed)
Christian ministry and the Asian
nation: The Metropolitan YMCA in
Singapore 1946 -2006…, 2006, Goh.
T. B. H.
Evolution of volunteering
Heart@Work , 2001, National Council
of Social Services
Heart@Work , 2001, National Council
of Social Services
Heart@Work , 2001, National Council
of Social Services
What is volunteering?
Three ideas about volunteering:
1.An activity
2.Given freely
3.Intended to benefit others
Evolution of volunteering
Heart@Work , 2001, National Council
of Social Services
For All We Care: 50 years of social
service in Singapore, 1958 -2008,
2008, National Council of Social
Service.
Volunteerism and Early Singapore
Types of
Volunteering
Forms of volunteering
Faith -based
volunteering
Event -based
volunteering
Skills-based
volunteering
Corporate
volunteering
Volunteerism and Early Singapore
To summarise : Volunteering…
• in Western societies took on a more
organised form.
• in Singapore emerged organically from
mutual aid groups.
• has since diversified into many forms.
• is still widely practised in Singapore and
other countries
INTERVIEW
Let us listen to some individuals on the ground about their experiences related to
volunteering
Dr Goh Wei Leong
Co-Founder and Advisor,
HealthServe
Ms Charlotte Yew
Prison Fellowship Service
Ms Melissa Aratani Kwee
CEO, The National Volunteer
& Philathrophy Centre
Thought activity:
Why do you volunteer?
Think back on past volunteering experiences you have had
and reflect on the top volunteering motivations that you
identified in the Volunteer Functions Inventory.
1. What are your top two motivations
based on the
Volunteer Functions Inventory that you completed at the
start of this lesson?
2. What are you hoping to get out of your C&E
volunteering?
INTERVIEW
Let us listen to some individuals on the ground about their experiences related to
volunteering
Mithrajit
Year 1 Student, Mentor,
Teach SG
Mr Gabriel Lee
Feed 52
Dennis & Daniel
Creation Care SG & NUS Students'
Community Service Club (CSC)
Contributions of Volunteers
and their Motivations
As you watch the videos, have some food for thought:
1. Do young people still have the same ideas about volunteering compared to older people?
2. For young people, how do they cope with the demands of volunteering? Is it necessary for young
people to wait to start work and earn a stable income before they can commit to volunteering?
Conclusion
REFERENCES
Al-Huda Mosquen . (n.d ). Al-Huda Mosque Befrienders. Retrieved from http://www.alhuda.sg/befrienders.html
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favoured races in the struggle
for life . Lo n d o n : J. Mu rra y.
Go h . T. B. H. (2 0 0 6 ). Christian ministry and the Asian nation: The Metropolitan YMCA in Singapore 1946
-2006… Arm o u r
Pu b lish in g Pt d Lt d .
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REFERENCES
National Council of Social Service. (2001).
Heart@Work : Social services in Singapore through the years.
Na t io n a l Co u n cil o f
So cia l Se rvice
Na t io n a l Co u n cil o f So cia l Se rvice . (2 0 0 8 ). For All We Care: 50 years of social service in Singapore, 1958
-2008 . Na t io n a l Co u n cil
o f So cia l Se rvice
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Sin g a p o re Writ e rs Fe st iva l. (2 0 2 1 ). Vo lu n t e e r Ro le s. Re t rie ve d fro m h t t p s:/ / www.sin g a p o re writ e rsfe st iva l.co m / swf2 0 2 1 / vo lu n t e e r
St a rh u b . (n .d .). Community Investments . Re t rie ve d fro m h t t p s:/ / www.st a rh u b .co m / a b o u t -u s/ co rp o ra t e su st a in a b ilit y/ co m m u n it yin ve st m e n t s.h t m l# :~:t e xt =Em p lo ye e %2 0 vo lu n t e e rism ,p a id %2 0 vo lu n t e e r%2 0 le a ve %2 0 a %2 0 ye a r.
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REFERENCES
Tan, P. (Ed.). (1996). Metropolitan YMCA Singapore: 50 years in the people business (1946
-1996).
To h , W. L. (2 0 2 0 ). Na t io n wid e m o ve m e n t t o sp u r S'p o re re sid e n t s t o se w m a sks d u rin g Co vid -1 9 circu it b re a ke r p e rio d . The
Straits Times . Re t rie ve d fro m h t t p s:/ / www.st ra it st im e s.co m / sin g a p o re / n a t io n wid e -m o ve m e n t -t o -sp u r-sp o re -re sid e n t s-t o se w-m a sks-d u rin g -co vid -1 9 -circu it -b re a ke r
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