We are very grateful to the TorontoTarget Team for their assistance.

Sincere thanks to our

HOW CAN WE ENCOURAGE OUR CATHOLIC GRADE 9 STUDENTS TO COMPLETE THEIR 40 HOURS OF
COMMUNITY SERVICE IN GRADE 9?

   !" #$%&   '   ()&# |)



*+%$,|-

. /
0.*12/3/455 

RATIONALE RESULTS FOCUS GROUP THEMES

å Boys want help in starting their community service as they
å Neil McNeil is a Catholic school founded by the Spiritan find it overwhelming at first.
Fathers to develop young men to, ³live their lives in the å They have a strong preference for easily accessible
service of others´. opportunities such as those organized by the school, and that
å As such one would expect Neil boys to complete their are accompanied by friends, family members or school staff.
mandatory 40 hour community service before Grade 12. å They want authentic experiences that are engaging and
å The reality is that students often wait until the last minute reinforce their capabilities as well as make them feel like they
to complete their hours. are really contributing.
å This tendency can be interpreted as a lack of å They appreciate and are motivated by rewards and
internalization of the message of the school motto, and recognition. This can be a celebration, an award, prize draws
Catholic education in general, that hopes to encourage The number of Grade 10 students with outstanding community or skill development that they perceive will help them in post-
young people to carry out their Christian vocation hours has been reduced substantially. In March 2011, 29% have 0 secondary or the work force.
through serving others. hours, 36% have 1-39 hours and 35% have •40 hours. å They need regular reminders and encouragement. This could
å The team proposed a pro-active pilot focusing on the come from any number of sources including their family,
Grade 9s. announcements, presentations, bulletin boards, or flyers.
METHODOLGY
CONCLUSIONS
å Surveyed all Grade 9 students in November 2009 to learn The goal of having Grade 9s complete their graduation
of their knowledge, parent support and purpose of requirement in Grade 9 is certainly possible if you:
community service. å articulate the significance of community service as a life-long
å Developed 10 questions for the focus groups (those who activity,
had completed and those who hadn¶t) to determine the å support that expectation with adult and peer modelling,
source of the lack of motivation to complete their hours. å acknowledge and celebrate that achievement.
å Refined motivational practice based on response data. å students will complete this graduation requirement before
The number of Grade 11 students with outstanding community Grade 12 even if they don¶t do so in Grade 9.
å Posted monthly service hours for the three hours has been reduced. In March 2011, 28% have 0 hours, 34%
categories. For a Catholic School, this is crucial as it speaks to the core
have 1-39 hours and 38% have •40 hours. values of our educational philosophy.
å Promoted service opportunities and student
achievement with service bulletin board, Grade 9 REFERENCES
visits, PA and Synervoice announcements,
Dymund, S., Renzaglia, A., and Chun, E.J. (2008). Elements of
newsletters, monthly incentive draws from January LITERATURE REVIEW High School Service Learning Programs. Career
to May for those students who completed their å Participating in community service activities in adolescence Development
hours has been correlated with a number of positive outcomes in for Exceptional Individuals, 31, 37.
å Initiated service link in Webmarks and Early adulthood Planty, M., Bozick, R., and Regnier, M. (2006). Helping because
Progress Reports å Volunteering in adolescence appears to promote volunteerism you have to or helping because you want to? Sustaining
å Solicited staff, parents and community partners for in adulthood Participation in Service Work from Adolescence Through
service opportunities and expanded school å Young people seem to see the connection between their Young Adulthood. Youth Society, 38, 177.
opportunities actions and the potential to cause positive change The number of Grade 12 students with outstanding community Renders, H., and Youniss, J. (2006). School-based Required
å CSAC provided 2010 Freshman 40 trophy and å Factors most easily incorporated into our programs include hours has been reduced substantially. In March 2011, 8% have 0 community Service and Civic Development in
plaque at the Freshman 40 Celebration and authentic context of the service opportunities, programmatic hours, 29% have 1-39 hours and 63% have •40 hours. Adolescents.
Breakfast in mid-May support by administration, celebration of accomplishments, Applied Developmental Science, 10, 1.
å Encouraged feeder elementary school students to and shared leadership between adults and students Seder, S. (2007). Catalyzing a Commitment to Community
participate in service program participating in the service
RESULTS Service
in Emerging Adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 22,
612.
Youniss, J., McLellan, J., Yates, M. And Su, Y. (1999). The Role
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
of
We are very grateful to: Neil McNeil Principals John Shanahan
Community Service in Identity Development: Normative,
and Michael Wallace, CSAC, TCDSB IT team, Joyce MacDonald
Unconventional, and Deviant Orientations. Journal of
and Dave Outhet. Sincere thanks also to our parents and the
Adolescent Research, 14, 248-261.
staff. Contact information
angela.gambatesa@tcdsb.org
wendy.hooker@tcdsb.org
In 2009-2010 56 Grade 9 boys (25%) boys completed or linton.soares@tcdsb.org
Compared to 8 other TCDSB schools, Neil McNeil has the lowest
surpassed their 40 hours, with the highest at 215 hours by mid-
percentage of 0 hours and the greatest percentage of Grade 9
May. Currently, in 2010-2011, the Grade 9s have almost doubled
students with 1-39 and •40 hours of community service.
their hours earned by March, with 5 students exceeding 100 to
|
|  
 


175 hours.