Topic 1: Does increasing travels between countries enable people to learn different cultures or to

Topic 105: People tend to believe that all young adults should undertake a period of 
unpaid work for the good of the community. Do you agree or disagree?
 
(gain experience, especially first-hand experience), (learn and exercise skills), (strengthen the sense of 
responsibility/ obligation),
(help others on an impromptu basis),
(establish norms of solidarity and reciprocity) ;
( build mutual trust)
( mandatory), (enthusiasm);
(constitute a distraction)
In recent years, it has become more and more common for societies to encourage and 
organize young people to work as volunteers for non-profit organizations and the community. 
Community service has even been proposed as a requirement for graduation in some middle 
schools. There is a lot of opposition to "mandatory" volunteer work, a term which seems to be 
self-contradictory. I agree that the voluntary participation of youths is required, but 
volunteerism is a preferred option to most youngsters in today's world.
A fact to support volunteerism is that it allows young people to gain experience and 
exercise skills, which are beneficial for their performance in the future workplace. Most of the 
young workers that are volunteering have little social experience, as they spend much of their 
time at school. Working with others and interacting with people from all social backgrounds, 
they can enhance their abilities of problem solving, communication and teamwork. They are 
thus better prepared for the public life in the future.
Another benefit of volunteer ism is the development of a young worker's motivation to 
help others and serve the interest of others without reward, a spirited fight back against 
individualism and egoism. A worrying trend in today's society is that a young adult's 
motivation is sourced more from individual interest than from the interest of others. 
Organizing volunteer service on a large scale, especially among youngsters, can counteract 
the corrosive effect of this trend. Youngsters are directed to look after the good of others and 
help others without asking for payment or reward. In the long term, it upholds a sense of 
community rebuilds the cohesion among members of community and reduces distrust that is 
escalating between people.
Despite those merits of organized volunteer work, participants' entire willingness should 
be guaranteed. Otherwise, they would be less willing or likely to commit to their work. 
Instead of enforcing a policy without consulting young people in advance, schools can take 
another approach, showing youngsters the meaningfulness of their commitment to the local 
community. If possible, young adults can be given a range of options so they can choose one 
that is most helpful for their skill enhancement,
It seems from the above discussion that youngsters should be encouraged to participate in 
volunteer work, increasing both skills and their awareness of the long-run interest of the 
community in which they live. If administered well, volunteer work has benefits to both 
individual workers and the society as a whole.
1

---

1. Without reward=without payment=free of charge=voluntarily:
2. Counteract = counter-offset =neutralize
3. Good =interest= benefit 
4. Cohesion = unity = solidarity 
5. Distrust=disbelief=suspicion 
6. Escalate=worsen=intensify
7. Consult =discuss with=seek advice from 
8. Meaningfulness = significance
9. Enhancement = improvement
2

---