My Social Action Project

• Consider the effectiveness of the project, considering each component and reflecting on your learning experience as well as the impact on the school or community.

This project was extremely effective in aiding the students' understanding of how other people and other children their age struggle to afford the things that they take for granted in their everyday lives and to understand the importance of giving back to their community and to those in need. This was also an eye-opener for the community as the students had gone home and told their parents about the initiative as well as the parents reading about the initiative in the school newsletter and learning what the foundation did and seeing the reality of poverty within the community that most are unaware of. This will hopefully encourage members of the community and the students and parents of the school to continue donating and helping the community even after the initiative at the school is over.

• The successes and challenges of the project.

The success of this project could be seen in how well the students participated and donated every week and competed for house points so that their house could gain the most points at the end of the term. The students were extremely motivated to take part and d what they could with the incentive of being given house points and merit for their contribution to the initiative. This was also translated to the community as parents also contributed and sent the items that were asked for every week on "Other People's Day" which was a Wednesday. The students also seemed to grasp the concept that other people matter and that it is important to give back where we are able to. The challenges presented themselves when it came time to present and speak to the students as they lost focus and became restless during some points and I feel that I may have lost their attention during some portions of the presentation. It was also a challenge to coordinate with the teacher that was in charge of managing our project and that I needed to report back to as he was a Senior Phase teacher and their school day is slightly longer than the Foundation Phase's but this was overcome by communication and mutual understanding.

• How has service learning changed you personally?

This project has changed my view of the world that I live in and helped me to appreciate what I have been blessed with and understand the crucial importance of giving back as it really does help people in more ways than we know. Our country is one that is rife with poverty, but unfortunately, many of us are blind to it or choose not to see it all together; this project has allowed me to open my eyes and be conscious of the state of my country, my community and the people that walk around me on a daily basis and realize that most people are struggling just to make ends meet and it is our duty to assist wherever we can. Even if it is a small amount, every little bit really does make a difference in someone's life.

• How has service learning developed you professionally? What new knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes have you gained?

In terms of my chosen professional career, this project has made me understand the importance of educating the youth (especially in the Foundation Phase) on what it means to give back and how their little donations can help people. This understanding has to be built in children from a young age and by introducing this into schools, it allows students to learn attributes such as empathy, gratitude, and generosity which are all fundamental traits which are characteristics that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives. This new knowledge has reminded me that Foundation Phase teaching is an extremely holistic practice and our goal is to create well-rounded students that will one day contribute positively to their communities and society as a whole. We are not just educators but also surrogate parents that have to teach essential life skills and help them understand the world that they live in as they might not have anyone at home who may be able to do this for them.

• Describe the benefit of this initiative to the school and comment on its sustainability.

This initiative was extremely beneficial to the school as it helped the students understand the gravity of the topic of poverty in their country and assisted them in learning real and small ways that they, themselves, could help the people that are around them in sustainable ways. This also taught the students extremely beneficial characteristics and skills that they will hopefully carry with them for the rest of their lives. This initiative was also beneficial to the surrounding community as the school was used as a tool to make the community aware of the organization and show them that it does not take much out of one's own pocket to donate and help their community and those in need. I feel that this initiative is extremely sustainable as it was only being done for this term and each week every student was asked to bring something different for the cause which meant that, no matter what, there was always a small way that someone could help or donate, be it in the form of small change or a bottle of peanut butter if they could.