National service?

A former Prime Minister of Downunder is suggesting that national service should again be considered. This time, he is suggesting, it should be for all school leavers but not necessarily military service.

It is an idea I have often thought about. If nothing else I like the idea of school leavers not being able to go straight from school to university or into some sort of training. I am aware that some people say mathematics students are at a disadvantage if they cannot continue without a break...but how many mathematics students are there and how much of a disadvantage are they really going to experience?

For everyone else I think it is an idea worth thinking about. As the former PM is suggesting it does not need to be military service. Having to give some sort of service to the community or country in which you live doesn't seem such a bad idea. As a school leaver most of us have had our parents and the taxpayer supporting us. Some have had a part time job, others have volunteered.

I had a regular volunteering role from the time I was fourteen. It wasn't something I intended to happen. It just happened.  In my last year at school I took on another volunteer role which lasted until I ceased my teacher training. In doing it I gave up all of either Saturday or Sunday right through term time and I worked for around ten hours on each day. It was only because the institution in question changed the way it operated that I ceased to do the job. 

What I did then was a huge challenge. I learned so much. Sometimes people have asked me if I have ever regretted giving up so much time when the other students were out enjoying themselves. The answer is no. I would do it all over again if asked. I was one of the lucky ones.

I know most people don't feel like that. They have found friendship in other ways. That's fine with me but I do wonder what sort of people they might have become if they had volunteered in other ways. 

Volunteering is not simply about having fun. It is about learning to take responsibility and empathy.  Often it is about taking on a task, planning it and seeing it through to the end. 

The former PM suggested that alternatives to military service could involve volunteering in aged care or working in indigenous communities. I know the latter is a particular interest of his. I would add things like environmental projects, building playgrounds and bike tracks, working in libraries and animal shelters. Yes, they would need a living allowance but, if they don't do the work then they should perhaps be required to pay the allowance back and their paths to further training might be blocked.

It is not likely to happen. There would probably be an outcry if anyone tried to introduce it. I can't help wondering though - would we better off if the school leaver generation was learning to volunteer?