Running Head: CSP1001 Portfolio

University of Technology, Jamaica

Faculty of Engineering and Computing

School of Computing and Information Technology

Academic Year 2019-20

Semester 2

Module: CSP1001 Community Service Project

Name:

Title of Paper: My Community Service Project at the Social Development Commission

Date of Submission:

Name:

ID#:

Lecturer:

Tutorial Day/Time: Wednesday, 9:00 am

Name of Agency/Project: Social Development Commission

Agency Supervisor:
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Reflection 1

Community service or volunteerism refers to an act of willing service, giving of one’s

time and talents without expecting compensation. In other words, this service goes beyond

obligation and reward. It is performed usually because one intends to make a difference as

volunteers are often passionate about the cause to which they provide support. Despite the

lack of monetary compensation, volunteerism is beneficial to both the recipient and volunteer

as one can develop new skills and gain valuable experience from volunteering. For me, a life

not engaged in the service of others is a life not meaningfully employed.

It is in a country’s best interest to foster a spirit of service in its citizens. Jamaica’s vision

for 2030 proposes a Jamaica that is the ideal place “to live, work, raise families, and do

business” (National Planning Institute of Jamaica, 2009). This vision will be actualized by

achieving four goals related to “empowerment, social security, economic prosperity and the

health and well-being of Jamaicans living in a healthy natural environment” (Allen, 2009). Of

the four, goals one and four are most closely linked to volunteerism. These stated verbatim

are: “Jamaicans are empowered to achieve their fullest potential” and “Jamaica has a healthy

natural environment” (National Planning Institute of Jamaica, 2009). Both goals have an

individual and joint impact on the Jamaican society and our ability to achieve vision 2030.

These goals could even be considered to be dependent as the population must be educated

and empowered to protect our shared home.

Empowerment is a process of social interaction and ‘to empower’ as defined by the

Merriam Webster dictionary is “to promote the self-actualization or influence of” (empower,

Merriam-Webster). The National Development plan uses four measures of empowerment

related to healthcare and the environment, improved education and training at all levels,

better social protection and a greater appreciation for and improvement of our culture in its
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various forms. On the other hand, building a healthy natural environment focuses on

sustainable management of resources, sustainable development and enhanced adaptability,

resilience to and recovery from disasters.

These can be said to align with a spirit of service as both require the active involvement

of citizens to be accomplished. As a social process, empowerment requires interaction among

persons who face similar issues and have similar backgrounds in order to truly be effective.

While many are formally employed in agencies geared at addressing the various aspects of

empowerment, much more is required. Volunteers can provide significantly more relatable

and actionable input on how to implement real solutions to issues with which they may be

more familiar. In relation to environmental protection, total involvement is required. Some

inculcated cultural practices may be counters to this goal, for instance, slash and burn

agriculture and improper garbage disposal. Volunteers with connections to communities are

able to share the message of environmental protection in more relatable ways. Additionally,

they can lead and involve others, through empowerment.

Goal one appeals to me the most as I believe empowerment at all levels yields changes in

behaviour. I believe I can contribute to achieving this goal by encouraging youth in my

community, sharing relevant information and getting people involved in community

development as well as personal development. Doing this does not require volunteering with

an organization which makes it quite a simple but efficient way to contribute to nation-

building.

Lecturer’s Signature:_______________________ Submission Date:_______________

CSP1001 Portfolio

Reflection 2

The Social Development Commission (SDC) in Brown’s Town, St. Ann is the agency at

which I decided to volunteer. The Social Development Commission is an arm of the Ministry

of Local Government and Community Development and was established in 1965. The aim of

the SDC is island-wide community development through several programs which target the

major issues in Jamaican communities in “sport, social, cultural & economic development”

(Social Development Commission, 2020). They are the agency with responsibility for

Jamaica’s seven hundred and seventy-five (775) communities in seventy-three (73)

development areas. They work directly with community members, Community Based

Organizations (for example, churches and schools) and other key stakeholders to generate

customized ‘priority plans’ which address each community’s unique needs. All these goals

are accomplished through seven programs: Strengthening Participatory Governance

Framework (SPGF), Community Research and Development Planning Program, Local

Economic Development Support Program (LEDSP), Community Education Support

Program, Sport for Community Development, Community Incentives and Grant Program and

finally, Parish Inter-Agency Networking Program (PIAN) (Social Development Commission,

2020).

The general aim of any community service project is to gain valuable experiences while

making positive contributions to the organization selected. In keeping with the goal of

empowering Jamaicans to achieve their fullest potential, selecting the Social Development

Commission provides an ideal platform to make a change. As such, during my forty (40)

hours of service, I intend to focus not only on working within the office, but also getting out

in the field to interact with citizens. Upon completing my service I hope to have

accomplished the following: make a difference at the organization, sensitize citizens on the

COVID-19 protocols, survey various locations and gather responses from residents to
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understand how they are coping during the pandemic. These goals will be accomplished by:

arriving on time to be debriefed about the day’s proceeding, completing a period of training

so I can adhere to company protocols, cooperating with my supervisor and travelling to

specified locations in St. Ann where I will gather data and distribute information. As it relates

to making a difference in the organization, I will try to identify issues or areas which could

use improvement. The SDC is a prime location for the contribution I intend to make in

society.

Lecturer’s Signature:_______________________ Submission Date:_______________

CSP1001 Portfolio

Reflection 3

Forty hours of community service, at the Social Development Commission’s Brown’s

Town office, translated to two weeks for me spanning Monday, August 10 to Friday, August

21. During this time I experienced a few issues, however, these were quite negligible. The

challenges experienced may be representative of more deepseated issues in the wider

Jamaican society which may prevent vision 2030 from being realized. However, every

problem has a set of possible solutions or mitigation measures which can improve the

situation.

As I was engaged mainly in data entry, toward the end of my service, the main issue

was with forms that were not completed properly. These forms were issued to business

owners in several large and small communities in St. Ann and were intended to gather

information about adherence to government stipulated protocols. These forms consisted of

several pages and incomplete or erroneous data being entered lowered my efficiency as

sometimes it was impossible to make corrections without the presence of the data collectors

or their supervisors.

Another issue was the absence of Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Devices at the

facility and the power went quite often. On one occasion, after completing data entry for

approximately seventy-five percent (75%) of a stack of forms, the power went and the data

had not been saved. This meant I had to restart the process. Also, the required software was

only installed on specific machines, so I could not switch workstations if a machine was

particularly slow.

The first issue issue reflects, to some extent, the tendency of Jamaicans to forego

instructions. During the first few days of service all participants, including data collectors and

data entry volunteers, were involved in an orientation process. These sessions included
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detailed instructions on how to complete the forms under various circumstances. The fact that

forms were not completed properly, indicates a lack of interest in the task or indifference

toward the instructors. In the case of the wider society, it may indicate resistance to

regulations or instructions outlined by the government.

The other two issues reflect more on funding received by government organizations

and the level of knowledge in networking and Information Technology. Some organizations

may not receive enough funding to purchase energy saving or protective equipment (such as

UPS or surge protectors) or may not have fully functional IT units.

If we hope to accomplish all four goals by 2030, which is only ten years away, the

reluctance of citizens to follow guidelines will make this a challenge. Once regulations do not

restrict rights and freedoms of the population, these guidelines should be enforced.

Additionally, public awareness campaigns need to reflect the various classes of Jamaicans in

order to be more effective. It is often taken for granted that everyone has access to and makes

use of traditional and digital media. Meeting people in their communities, working with

Community Based Organizations and volunteers, is a more effective way to spread the

message of change. As it relates to the problems at the SDC, they could seek more funding

from the government for both equipment and a Technical Support and Networking Unit.

Lecturer’s Signature:_______________________ Submission Date:_______________

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Reflection 4

Volunteering at the SDC was quite a valuable experience during which I learnt more

about Jamaica, in particular my parish, St. Ann. The ability to traverse various hidden

communities and interact with citizens, even during a pandemic which requires physical

distancing, was refreshing after several months of being inside. On my first day, I was

engaged in asset mapping which required the use of a GPS (Global Positioning System) Unit.

This was particularly interesting for me as I enjoy studying Geography and gained some

practical experience with tools used in the field. While social interaction was limited to a

professional sphere, I was able to see people in their home sphere where they were

comfortable and open. I would consider that to be the best part of my service. As I was

engaged in much data entry, I would consider the worst part of my service to be reading

handwritten forms. While it was part of the process, it could get tedious and frustrating when

the forms were not properly completed and/or the handwriting was poor.

The goals I set for this period of community service were to: make a difference at the

organization, sensitize citizens on the COVID-19 protocols, survey various locations and

gather responses from residents to understand how they are coping during the pandemic. For

the most part, I was able to achieve the objectives of my service. I was engaged in:

sensitizing citizens, providing them with valuable information while simultaneously

gathering data about their observance of the COVID-19 protocols. I believe business owners

and members of the communities surveyed during my service were properly sensitized about

the government stipulated protocols and encouraged to observe them. This would ensure

more healthful practices or at least knowledge of them.

The Social Development Commission could benefit from having more volunteers as the

volume of work is usually high. The work of the SDC involves travelling to lesser known
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parts of the island and interacting with citizens in order to discover how best to assist them.

This is because the core belief of the SDC is that nation-building requires community

building. Voluntary assistance would be necessary in both data collection and entry. This is

due to the continuous observation of communities, attempts to preserve history, update maps

and identify issues which need to be resolved. Volunteers with knowledge of Information

Technology would also be a great asset as several technical issues are present at the facility.

CSP1001 (Community Service) is an interactive module both in and outside of the

traditional classroom setting and provides students with a real opportunity to make a

difference. The suggested reading material holds insight on what it truly means to be

Jamaican. In Vision and Volunteerism, particularly, a more indepth understanding of how to

define community service or volunteerism is explored. It demonstrates how a spirit of

helpfulness, cooperation and involvement is our modus operandi and how this seems to be on

a decline. The presentation aspect of the module offers students the opportunity to find out

more about their peers, discover new ways of thinking and challenges us to volunteer in our

own ways outside of the required hours. However, there is still room for improvement. I

would suggest providing listings of agencies where students could make a difference in

addition to gaining valuable knowledge and experience. Agencies could be encouraged to

sign up to be part of the listing, providing information on the tasks volunteers would be

required to do, how they can help the organization and possibly how the agency’s work

benefits Jamaica or subsets of the Jamaican society.

Lecturer’s Signature:_______________________ Submission Date:_______________

CSP1001 Portfolio

References

1. Allen, P. L. (2009). Messages. In Vision 2030 Jamaica: national development plan

(pp. ix). essay, Planning Institute of Jamaica.

2. Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Empower. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved

August 9, 2020, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empower

3. National Planning Institute of Jamaica. (2009). Vision 2030 Jamaica: national

development plan. Planning Institute of Jamaica.

4. Social Development Commission. (2020). The social development commission.

https://sdc.gov.jm/about-us/general/