MERRILL: Service Learning Fair Teaches Lesson in Community
A Merrill student signs up to help a community organization during the school’s 4th annual Service Learning Fair.
One hackneyed complaint of students about the humdrum of schoolwork is the perceived irrelevance of what they work on in the classroom to the real, outside world. Merrill Middle School is flying full speed ahead into the face of that increasingly obsolete stereotype.
This morning Merrill held its 4th annual Service Learning Fair for 8th graders whose “homework” includes community service as one key component of the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum.
Twenty-five area agencies, nonprofits and institutions were represented in the school cafeteria ranging from the Animal Rescue League to Special Olympics to the students’ former and future schools (Hubbell and Windsor Elementary and Roosevelt High School). Recruits were signing up at a brisk pace, committing to invest at least 10 hours of their time in the cause of their choice. But that’s not all. Besides filling their time quota, students in Dave O’Connor’s 8th grade Civics/Humanities course must complete a “service rationale,” a “service plan,” a “verification of service,” and a “service reflection” to document and assess their experience.
O’Connor says the students are not limited to the groups present at the fair this morning but whatever form of service they choose is subject to staff approval. He said it’s not uncommon for kids to so enjoy volunteering that they end up going well beyond the 10 hour threshold. The hope is that enduring habits of citizenship will be established now and last for lifetimes.
Allison Woodward-Chartier, the IB Coordinator at Merrill, notes the event has grown steadily since it was begun in 2009, sometimes as a direct result of kids suggesting the addition of new community partners such as the Des Moines Bike Collective.
“Kids especially enjoy going back to their old elementary school,” she said. “They like to help out with their ex-teachers.”
Sure enough, Hubbell IB Coordinator Jamie Page reported that all of the names on her signup sheet were alums, including Andre Graham and Griffin Lennon. The two pals seemed eager to return to their old stomping grounds and give something back.
Windsor teacher Kate Rodriguez was manning the Wildcat table equipped with class pictures of the current 8th graders when they were 5th graders. She said they get a kick out of seeing how much they’ve changed. And now they’re effecting positive change in their community.
O’Connor coordinates four service opportunities right there at Merrill.
- Last year 40+ kids were involved in a program that recycled more than three tons of paper.
- Soles4Souls collects and delivers shoes to the poor and disaster victims around the world.
- Meals From the Heartland is a crusade to end world hunger.
- The Des Moines Holiday Food Project collects and distributes food to the needy during the winter holiday season.
Besides empowering students as citizen activists, the IB curriculum also deepens the symbiosis between a community and its schools by getting more adults more directly involved. Many of the service pledges require that a student be accompanied by a parent or mentor. Work done on behalf of any of the representatives at the fair is verified by adult supervisors who work hand-in-hand with the kids.
So the old moan and groan about being anxious to get into the action won’t cut it anymore. Student community service is more than just studying the real world. It’s jumping in and changing it!
This story is part of ”Around the District in 180 Days,” a project by the DMPS Community Relations office to share stories about events, programs and people from each and every school in Des Moines during the 2012-13 school year.
