Father Saturnino Urios University

GUIDANCE CENTER

MODULE FOR STUDENT VOLUNTEERS

Rationale:

Social integration through volunteerism of students is a vital element for community/nation building

especially in this present time where calamities and natural disasters are becoming a global phenomenon.

These calamities brought so much terror and devastation to human existence ever than before.

In order to help to the community in these critical times, this module aim to promote sense of

voluteerism and spirit of reaching out of students by providing training/activities. The program also integrate

self-awareness and team buidling activities because these are essential in the sucess or failure of an

organization or group in reaching its vision or goal. Moreover, this module aims to equip student volunteers

with the right skills and attitude in responding to the call of service as student volunteers.

Goal:
1. To develop sense of responsibility and spirit of volunteerism to the wider community through

active participation in community activities especially in times of calamity.

2. To equip student volunteers with the skills and attitudes needed as student volunteers.
 Session 1: “Let’s Talk About Me”

It may seem absurd that we need to make time to understand ourselves. Yet many of us have little or
no idea who we are. We are under the impression that self-knowledge should happen automatically. We must
first know ourselves before we take on the world. Taking the time to understand ourselves enables us to
develop a set of personal views—namely, who we are, how we are different from others, how we might
balance our strengths and weaknesses, and what we would like to accomplish in this life.
We can better serve others when we know who we are.

Objectives:
1. To make a complete and meaningful perspective of one’s own self .
2. Explore and appreciate one’s own uniqueness.
3. To value personal stregths, weaknesses and individuality.

Materials:
1. conducive venue for the activity
2. LCD projector
3. Copy of the list of traits/qualities/characteristics and actions (Appendix A)

Time Allotment: 1 hour and 30 minutes

Activity: “Poly Personality”

Procedure:
1. The facilitator will come up with a list of traits/qualities/characteristics and actions
(Appendix A).
2. All participants should sit in circle comfortably.
3. The facilitator will read the prepared list of traits/qualities/characteristics and actions.
4. If a participant feels as though the adjective being called out describes him/her,
he/she must stand and do the action called out.
5. The participant must do the action ONLY IF they feel as though they posess that
specific description.
6. When the next adjective is called out, the participants who are standing must sit if
they don’t think they possess the next adjective called out.

Processing Questions: Small Group Discussion

1. How do you feel about the activity?
2. How do you see yourself from others?
3. How do you feel that you possess a specific quality while some others don’t and vice
versa?
4. How do you define yourself?

Facilitator’s Input:

Begin you own self-evaluation with your physical appearance—stand in front of the mirror and take a
hard look at yourself. If you see nothing attractive about your reflection, first consider that your expectations
might be unrealistic. Even if you cannot approve fully of what you see in the mirror, accept what our Maker has
given you to work with. Learn to respect your body’s stregths and tolerate its shortcomings. Then proceed to
improve upon those aspects of your appearance that you might improve upon without harming yourself in any
way. Don’t concern yourself with what others say about your looks. Comfort with the appearance Nature has
given you leads to freedom and self-confidence.

You must evaluate your physical health. The human body is durable and amazing piece of machinery ,
aptly designed by Nature to meet its obligations. However you must take good care of your body if you expect
it to serve you well. Don’t overlook the nutritional aspects and physical activities that are vital to maintaining
your health. If you have been born with disabling attributes, understand and accept that these attributes are no
fault of your own. Capitalize on whatever physical strengths you might have and whenever possible and
appropriate, take advantage of sophisticated technology that mitigates your disability.

Explore the talents Nature has bestowed upon you. Most of us are born with a variety of talents and
skills. By tapping into them, we develop tools for our survival. However, we should also aspire to go beyond our
own survival and consider how we might utilize our talents to make this world a better place. We are all human
beings trying to get by. Some of us are born into comfort and plenty, while others are born into hardship. But
we occupy the same planet and all depend upon its vast resources to survive. Because we are all connected by
this need, each of us is obligated to safegaurd this world and help those who are less fortunate.
Understanding the internal dynamics of our mind enables us to recognize that talent alone is not
enough to guarantee success in this world in our chosen field. Sometimes, Nature gives us intellectual talents
and emotional interests that do not match.

 Intellectual division- the components of this intelligence include reasoning, judgment, logic,
discreation, calculation, imagination, analysis, and anticipation
 Emotional division- all human beings are born with the same capacity for feeling and expressing
emotions but the influence of different emotions on the mind varies between individuals.It is
like an orchestra, where different musicians represent different emotions. Each musician and
instrument in an orchestra is important.

Remember, we are what we make of ourselves. You can choose to be either your own best friend or
your own worst enemy. All strength must come from within, because no external source can provide it. Now
you must learn to believe in yourself. Take an in-depth inventory of your stregths and weaknesses. Take the
time to understand who you are, what you stand for and what you intend to do with your life.
 Session 2: “What Did You Say?
(Team Building)

Being able to communicate with others is one of the best life skills a person can develop. Someone who
can effectively communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings is better required for success both on the job and in
personal relationships. Effective communication is much more than being able to talk; it is also the ability to
listen and understand others, to “read” and interpret body language and to know the best ways to get our
points across.

Objectives:
1. To develop effective communication skills.
2. To encourage participants to think about their verbal communication and how to work through the
challenges of miscommunication and differing interpretation of instruction.

Materials:
1. conducive venue for the activity
2. Paper
3. pencil
4. copy of “Drawing Bugs” (Appendix B and C)
5. LCD Projector

Time Allotment: 1 hour and 30 minutes

Activity: “ Drawing Bugs”

Procedure:
1. Provide each participant with a piece of paper and pencil/marker.
2. Facilitator will read the Instruction found in the “Drawing Bugs” worksheet.
3. After everyone is finished, instruct participants to hold their drawings up so others can see
your drawing.
4. Show to the group the actual drawing (Appendix C)

Processing Questions: Small Groups Discussion

1. Why don’t all the bugs look like mine? ( Interpretation: Everyone has a different
interpretation based on his/her experiences).
2. What did you think first when you were told to draw a bug? What did you see in your mind?
3. What could we have done differently so that your drawings and mine would have looked
more alike?
4. What would have been the advantages of allowing questions to be asked?
5. How many of you wanted questions to be asked?
6. How can we relate the activity to our day to day communication?

Facilitator’s Input:

Knowing how to communicate with people in the right context for a given situation is an important
skill, as there are often unspoken rules and standards that are just expected. For example, it’s common practice
in the professional world to shake hands with people when meeting, rather than offering a high-five or hug. We
might use slang with our friends when talking about what happened at school or at a party, but we would
usually use different words and mannerism when telling our parents the same information.
 Language or communication varies by context and that it’s important to understand what might be
acceptable and expected in one setting may not be acceptable in another.
The Facilitator may emphasize the importance of non-verbal communication skills, as young people
often overlook this skill. Lastly, the facilitator may also emphasize the barriers to communication such as:
physical, perceptual, emotional, cultural, language, gender, interpersonal and generational.
 Session 3: I Can Make A Difference
(Film Showing: “A Small Act”)

Objectives:
1. To instill in the minds of student volunteers the value and spirit of reaching out and helping
others.

2. To promote awreness that one small act of kindness can make a significant impact to
someone else’s life and as students they can make a difference.

Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes

Materials:
1. documentary film “A Small Act”
2. Laptop
3. LCD Projector

Procedure:
1. Set-up the needed equipments before the time ( seating arrangement, LCD projector, and
audio quality).
2. Make a short/ brief introduction of the activity.
3. Instruct the student volunteers to pay attention to the movie.
4. Minimize the noise while the film showing is going on.

Processing:
1. How the movie inspired/motivate you as a student voluteer?
2. What is your realization from the movie?
3. How will you apply this realization/s to your personal life and to the community as a whole?

Facilitator’s Input:
Plot of the Movie:
“A Small Act” centers on the life story of Chris Mburu, who as a small boy living in a mud house in a Kenyan village
had his primary and secondary education paid for by a Swedish woman. This cost her $15 a month. They had never met. He
went on to the University of Nairobi, graduated from Harvard Law School, and is today a United Nations Human Rights
Commisioner.
The Film shows Mburu seeking the Swedish woman who “made my life possible”. She is Hilde Back. Before even
meeting her, in gratitude he started a foundation named the Hilde Back Foundation, to fund scholarships for poor village
children. Hilde Back was asked if, since she never had children, she thought of Chris as a son. “But I have had children” she
said. “I was a teacher. I had many, many children.” And one lived in a mud house in Kenya (www.rogerebert.com).

A volunteer is someone who is compassionate, kind, idealistic and more than anything selfless—
someone who puts the needs of others before one’s own, someone who would not think twice about sharing
what they have. We speak of how a little goes a long way and that by reaching out we can change a life (The
Sunday Times, February 26, 2012, www.sundaytimes).

We live in a world where individualism counts, where ignorance, arrogance and greed are eating into
its core, a world where it is easy to take the easy path and look away. Whether we are vociferous or silent, we
create a ripple effect in the communities we live in for we have a collective belief that we must stand together,
hand in hand, for what affects you, affects me too.

There is one more truth that we know—no one makes it alone. Oprah Winfrey once said “Everyone
who has achieved some success in life was able to do so because something or someone served as a beacon of
light. What seems to be an endless cycle of generational poverty and despair can be broken if each is willing to
be a light for the other. When you learn, teach. When you get, give because love means nothing if you don’t
share it.” That is the spirit of volunteerism.
(The Sunday Times, February 26, 2012, www.sundaytimes).