The other day, I came across a short blog post on the internet which called to mind many of the themes and topics we discussed in class on Tuesday. Please follow the hyperlink to view the post:
I found this post to be extremely inspirational and motivational, and while it clearly lacks many of the facts and evidence about the make-shift school, I was more intrigued by the concept behind the school and the questions it applies to our lives today. Firstly, let's discuss the teachers. These two men have dedicated the majority of their days to helping kids that they do not even know, and have seemingly done so with little to no convincing necessary, but by merely seeing the situation the children were in and knowing they had to do something about it. Whatever career or life the teachers had before they started the school is now entirely interrupted, and they are most likely receiving no pay for their selfless actions. In our discussion during class, many of us said that we found it more important to make sure we ourselves were living comfortably and taken care of before we would consider making philanthropy and volunteering a high priority. Putting ourselves in the teachers shoes, and assuming that they are not millionaires, would we have taken the same actions upon encountering the children? In today's society, would we feel comfortable giving up a prestigious job and steady pay in order to give back to others in the community full-time? I, especially as a student, feel a lot of pressure to make the most of my education by way of securing an excellent job in the future, and am unsure if I could drop everything and become involved in such a way as the two teachers have. However, by reading Pete Singer's book, I feel confident that he would undoubtedly urge all people to act in the ways of the two Indian teachers. But is this something that is actually manageable for us today?
Secondly, I'd like to mention the anonymous donors and discuss the role they play in making the school function. Although they are anonymous, they can certainly not be overlooked, as they are contributing invaluable items such as clothing, school supplies, and food to the children. To start, why would they remain anonymous, and what does it say about the role they have in society? Personally, I was inclined toward the tendency to focus more on the teachers than the anonymous figures, because their faces could not be seen and therefore their roles seemed less significant, although they in no way are. Also, the anonymous donations spoke to me as being much more manageable than what the teachers did, in terms of how much I would be willing to offer to help the children. By giving supplies, they are still very important to the success of the school, yet they can still keep their lives and careers in tact. I'm curious to see your ideas on which role you would be more inclined to perform, that of the teacher or of the anonymous donors, and if that differs from what you would prefer to do if your situation was different from what it is right now, as a student in college.
Again, I know the blog post is lacking a lot of detail and information about the school and the people involved, so sorry again! I know I included a lot of questions so I apologize for that as well, but just respond to what you like; I'm interested in what you guys all think of the post.
Dina Truncali
I agree with much of what Dina has said. The selflessness of the actions of the teachers evokes sympathy because they have given up. This, in essence, is the type of action the provokes an emotional response that will make us more likely to donate to a cause, as Singer describes in Chapter Four of his book. It also appears, although it cannot be confirmed due to the sparsity of the information in the blog, that the majority of the children in the area are being helped by the acts of the two teachers. Once again, as Singer says the research suggests, the large proportion of children affected by the teachers actions would cause more people to donate to this objective. In addressing the donors, I believe that the anonymity of the donors cloaks the donations in an air of mystery. This leaves people thinking about the cause much longer after they have stopped reading the article because they are left wondering about who would make such generous donations. With the thought in their mind, it would seem that people would be more likely to give to the purpose.
ReplyDeleteI find assessing this situation a little difficult just because our two worlds, the impoverished areas of India and America, are so vastly different. It is challenging to put yourself in the shoes of the teachers because you don’t know all of the conditions surrounding the decision.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the problems that Singer addresses in his book. So little of Americans philanthropic activities are directed at foreign countries. The distance and lack of visibility of the issues abroad make it hard for us to understand and comprehend these extreme situations, like the one in this article.
Keeping that in mind, it is difficult to say what I would do in this situation. If I was an Indian shopkeeper I might have more time to teach the children. You pointed out that their days are entirely interrupted, however, I don’t think this is the case. The article stated that they teach a couple of hours every morning. I assume their shop business employs another worker in which case another individual may cover the morning hours that they miss at the shop. While their actions are extremely selfless I believe they are still able to maintain their own lives in the process.
It would be much harder to pull a maneuver like this in America. Giving up a couple hours at a store is much different than giving up a prestigious job and steady pay here. In addition, while a shop-keeping job might be able to support you in India, you need a much more time consuming and rigorous job in America to maintain a certain lifestyle. Thus, I don’t think that this would be manageable today for the average person in the United States who wants to have a family.
Donating supplies is a whole different issue. That is, of course, a more manageable task and something I would take part in. I also think it is interesting to point out that this is a special case. This small unofficial school may elicit more donations because it is so easy to see that your supplies and food are directly helping the children.
I agree with Kaitlin about how it is hard to put yourself in the shoes of these volunteer teachers. I like to think that if I was in there situation I would take the time out of my day to help these children. While the donations are important that will only do so much for these kids.Many people don't just need donations they need hands on help. Like many people said in class, it is important to get at the root cause of the problem.
ReplyDeleteKaitlin also mentioned how the small unofficial school may elicit more donations. This relates to what Singer mentioned in his book about the identifiable victim effect stating "we will spend far more to rescue an identifiable victim than we will to save a 'statistical life.'" In this case the small school, while still a group, is small enough that we can see the children as individuals instead of an unknown mass which elicits more sympathy and donations.
As a college student dedicating a large portion of my time to gaining this education I find it difficult that I would be able to volunteer my time and initiate this school. Although many people find that giving money is more impersonal method of philanthropy, it is still a necessary part of it. I would still feel as though I am doing my part in helping by donating my money to fund the school and supplies for the children. Although does this make me selfish for preferring to further my own education when these children weren't even receiving a primary education prior to these volunteers? Maybe, but if I am being honest I can't say I would be able to be as selfless as these volunteers. However, maybe if I were in the same situation as those volunteers, I would have more time than I currently do to put forth my time. Although, I think the most impressive part of this is that these volunteers initiated this school. They saw a problem and actually executed a plan to help out. I am not sure I would be able to do the same, however I would definitely be willing to donate my money.
ReplyDelete