What is the essence of being a volunteer?
Recently,
I have an interview with a friend of mine who have been to Turkey and become a
volunteer in teaching. From his word of this special experience, he told me
that the reason why he want to join this project is because he think it's funny
and attractive, which he can go aboard, tasting different cultures. He only
need to pay for the organization less than ten thousand and then he would stay
in Turkey for almost two months. In there, he and other volunteers would
prepare some lessons including health, technology, introduction of Taiwan, etc,
to share with students there. For truth, it's appealing to Taiwanese people who
desire to go aboard yet they don't have enough money. Also, the access of
becoming one of the volunteers is easy, comparing to long-term volunteers'
training lessons. Due to accessible enter of becoming an overseas volunteers,
lots of people, especially college students, flowing to those developing areas,
in name of a "volunteer."
After
the interview, some questions came to my mind. What is put in the priority of
serving aids to other? Do those volunteers' help really meet locals' need? Is
it appropriate for organization putting such lower threshold on deciding
volunteers?
what should volunteer think before they start action?
The
Process(figure 1)
A chat
making by an experienced volunteer give me the answer. What is the process of
doing volunteer thing? From this picture, we can see that serving other is not
a straight line but a cycle. Every part is important as speaking to helping
other, regardless in Taiwan or overseas and regardless the short or long-term
of the help. However, most of short-term overseas volunteer organizations overlook
the part of "evaluation of the need" and "evaluation of the effects",
following the rethinking and self-examination of volunteer and organization.
This expanding hole of the missing parts gradually lead to organizations which break
away from the essence of volunteers to one more like travel industries. As the friend I
interviewed with told me something importance he learned from this experience
is the growth of himself.
(figure 1)
Going
somewhere, experiencing life around the world, learning and growing are
definitely accounts for a large part of becoming a volunteer. However, the
essence of volunteer is still serving locals in need. From the begin, volunteers
should focus on what locals really fall short and how to improve their life essentially.
After having deep realization of local's condition, they should prepare complete
plans and while practicing, keep thinking if the assistance does work. When
term is due, volunteers still need to record the result and keep following the
effect of plan and pass their outcomes to next volunteer groups. This cycle of
helping will thus never end, which will change and improve locals' environment
greatly.
People
always think that do something is better than doing nothing. Yet if we don't
exam if the help really help locals, we better not do anything. To be volunteers,
we should change our mind to "learning how to help other" instead just
"helping other".
Source
1.Himalayansecerts 直言，國際志工，你夠格嗎?
Retrieved from http://blog.xuite.net/himalayansecrets/blog/70812691
2. Lihpao Daily 2013.05.08 認知不足，海外志工恐幫倒忙Retrieved from http://blog.xuite.net/himalayansecrets/blog/70812691
Retrieved from http://blog.xuite.net/himalayansecrets/blog/45976377
My annotation talks about the essence of volunteering. It shows how volunteers go abroad and the difference of volunteering. There are long term and short term of volunteering. Here’s a case of my friend going to Turkey of project of AISEC. He just prepared the lessons and went to turkey. But when he taught the class, he really didn’t know what the students wanted to know.
ReplyDeleteMilano Kao:
Why did he go to Turkey?
Olive Huang:
The reason he went to Turkey is because he found it funny to make foreign friends there and only had to pay a little money. But, I just wonder how this can be called a volunteer? He spent time teaching the kids but not sure if he really wanted to teach the kid or met the kids’ needs.
Milano Kao:
So you don’t think it’s a volunteer in his case?
Olive Huang:
Yah…I think there’s an organization’s marketing promoting that this is a volunteering activity so people will come to.
Milano Kao:
I think there’re lots of people go abroad to experience foreign experiences more than helping others.
Olive Huang:
So in the interview, I want to know what the priority of service to others. Do we really need to meet the local’s needs? And is it appropriate for an organization to put such lower labor (students) that can go easily abroad and help others.
I take a picture of essence of why volunteering wants to help others. In this picture, there are two things that short term volunteering of AISEC project can’t limit the students. First is evaluation of the need. Before they go to the country, the volunteers will only do what the leaders say to prepare for class and teach the kids. But they seldom think why they have to teach them (foreign kids). Another problem of short term is the evaluation of the effect after they go volunteering. Maybe they just come back and forget what they do there. They simply remember the friendship and happy face.
Milano Kao:
So you think these are two major differences between long term and short term?
Olive Huang:
Yah…As for the long term, there’s more training courses for volunteers.
Milano Kao:
For example?
Olive Huang:
I’ve seen the volunteers of 國合會ICDF and only recruit long term volunteers for six months. And if someone has the professional sill, such as medical and education, they will pick up these people and offer them training courses. They will only focus on one thing that they are good at.
Milano Kao:
And you mention the missing part? What’s this?
Olive Huang:
They are the two things above.
Milano Kao:
ReplyDeleteYou think the short term volunteering is more like a travel industry in other countries?
Olive Huang:
Yah, I think it is for going abroad 3 weeks. They are more like travel industry and intercultural communication to make friends. They listen the order from leaders and do what are requested. Maybe after they have the experience they will rethink what they have done. But it’s too late.
Milano Kao:
So do you think short term volunteers necessary?
Olive Huang:
Hmm… I think it is still right to have short term volunteers. But they should think more that people really need help instead of listening to leaders. They need to know how to help.
Milano Kao:
So you think they should think more what they should do?
Olive Huang:
Yes, they need more preparation before going abroad. My friend prepares nothing but the lessons.
Milano Kao:
I think your article with interview points out the main problem between long term and short term volunteers. Like you say, the local need should be awared. One of my friends’ experiences says that before they graduate they have to volunteer in like Cambodia. But actually what they do is just donating money and then go traveling nothing else. Maybe the short term volunteer need to think more what they can do since long term is more professional.
Olive Huang:
I think the difference is the short term can focus on more preparation class before going abroad.
Milano Kao:
But are there other organizations having short term volunteering better than like AISEC?
Olive Huang:
I’ve asked a question to my friend and he doesn't want any preparation before going to Turkey but having fun. Most of people just want to go to other country but don’t know what they are gonna do and have no practical effect there. If they don’t know the local need, it’s better not going there.
Milano Kao:
I think maybe in the next annotation you can have the comparison of long term and short term and give us an example of what organization does.
Olive Huang:
Okay. For the next annotation I want to write what skills can a short term volunteer get. The short term volunteer can also pass several short term periods to become a long term cycle and contributing to the project continuously so that they will have practical effect to the local. It’s better for them keeping on the progress.