Reflection "In the Service of What?"

     I started to write this post in the "author's argument" format, however once I got about a paragraph done I realized that I am not entirely sure what the authors' were trying to say.  Though the essay was while organized and put together, the two opposing strategies that were being contrasted were not distinguished well from one another.  I found myself rereading multiple sections to figure out which example they were talking about.

     Also while reading this article, I thought I sensed the author's bias toward the Democratic party and the important of government programs, which I thought seemed misplaced an essay that I was reading as more comparing the two side then picking a better one.  All of my confusion however could be a testament to my trouble following the narrative voice of the essay as well.  I'm not really sure, maybe I am just foggy after a week off.

     In my opinion, both forms of community service were valuable.  The person experience of charity, that the authors alluded to as almost narcissistic, can be great for both those receiving and giving.  It could also be an eye opener to issues that have not been experienced by first hand by students.  And if people get a little ego boost from helping others, why is that a bad thing? I could propel them to do it more often, get others involved and/or give people a lead to follow.
    
     Equally as admirable, in my eyes, was the community service that was compared to government programs.  While it is less hands on, it heightens awareness tremendously and could be the gateway for some people to help out the cause in their own way.  The way it was done in the example also could help students with other parts of their education.  Such as it could help writing, literary, group work, organizational and problem solving skills.  It is also a way for students to have an affect on conflicts and problems that are out of there reach geographically or because of their age.

     All in all, I was not a fan of this essay because it did not, in my opinion, take into account that students learn in different ways.  Maybe one kind of community service is better for student A and the opposite is better for student B.  Maybe experience to both types of community service, or a combination of the two, would be beneficial to students learning.  I believe that as future teachers it is important to keep in mind the different learning styles and backgrounds of students and giving them options so that they can play to their academic strengths and challenge their weaknesses.