Exploring Motivations and Benefits of Volunteering: The Perspectives of High School Students in Selected Australian Islamic Schools

Abstract

Substantial research in educational and non-educational contexts demonstrates the importance and value of volunteering broadly and among young people specifically. However, there is no research that explores volunteering from the perspectives of students in Australian Islamic schools. To fill this gap, this paper explores the motivations for, and benefits of, volunteering from the perspectives of high school students in three Australian Islamic schools (AIS). The research utilised a phenomenological qualitative approach to explore the lived experience of these students vis-à-vis volunteering. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 (13 male and 13 female) high school students (HSS) (year 10 to 12) at three AIS across three states. The findings demonstrate that students were motivated to volunteer because of intrinsic religious reasons, self-satisfaction and development, altruism, knowledge and skill-based enhancement, social motives, employment-based motives, and inspiring parents’ motive. The benefits include individual and societal development, enhanced involvement and belonging within mainstream society, and countering Islamophobia.

Keywords

• Australian Islamic schools
• high school students
• volunteering
• motivation
• religion
• education