Social Competence and Civic Volunteerism of Senior High School Students in Davao City

Social Competence and Civic Volunteerism of Senior High School Students in Davao City

Gian Karl L. Roncesvalles.,^*Jed I. Bete., Johnruf Niño C. Nuñala

DOI : https://doi.org/10.51244/IJRSI.2024.1108037

Received: 14 July 2024; Revised: 28 July 2024; Accepted: 01 August 2024; Publish: 02 September 2024

ABSTRACT

The study aimed to determine the significant relationship between social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City. The study used a quantitative research design utilizing the descriptive-correlational method. A random sampling technique was employed to identify the 150 senior high school learners in three public secondary institutions in Davao City – one school per district. They served as the study respondents. Informed consent was obtained to guarantee ethical standards in data gathering. Data gathering was done online using Google Forms. Mean, Pearson Product Moment Correlation of Coefficient, and Regression Analysis were used to analyze the data. The results showed high levels of social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students. Further, researchers found that there is a significant relationship between social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City. The relation signifies that the higher the social competence a student possesses, the higher that they will engage in civic volunteerism activities. Finally, with the analysis, it was revealed that the indicators of civic volunteerism about the level of social competence significantly influence the civic volunteerism of senior high school students. The Department of Education may include social competence embedded in the curriculum as one of the competencies that students must have to result in civic volunteerism.

Keywords: Social Competence, civic volunteerism, senior high school students, engagement, and participation

INTRODUCTION

Civic volunteerism is defined as any effort in time provided for free to assist someone, individual, group, or organization. Civic volunteerism has always been a special aspect of our culture. Volunteerism plays a substantially bigger part in our civic life, according to social scientists, volunteerism not only helps community-based organizations influence the communities they serve, but it also links people to one another and to the issues that affect them. Civic Volunteerism in this context pertains to the willingness of students to engage in various volunteer activities such as conducting seminars on social issues, environment-laden initiatives, peer tutoring, donation drives, charity auctions, local Red Cross assistance, and the like.

Learners in higher tier in high school were observed to be spending their time online rather than engaging themselves through worthwhile activities such as civic activities. According to Sparks (2018), teen volunteerism declined from 2005 to 2015. Globally, student volunteerism is declining. Low involvement is due to a lack of persistent and structured volunteer groups, which leads to a lack of knowledge, awareness, and engagement among students. Students should know about volunteers to learn about social collaboration and sharing activities.

Moreover, the decline in student involvement in civic volunteerism activities can also be traced to the aspect of motivation. For instance, a great number of high school learners are not actively involved in civic volunteer activities because the various programs that were offered cannot attain the needs of students and in effect, result in lower motivation to involve themselves with such activities as stated by Noh (2020). Educational institutions should always make sure that the spirit of volunteerism is instilled in the school’s curriculum since it will help students realize that being a volunteer also means being caring, generous, and unselfish individuals who prioritize the needs of others before their own.

Moreover, social competency is the capacity to communicate and interact meaningfully in a social group or gathering. Some students struggle to understand their group’s environment, which affects their perception and attachment to it. Adaptive or acquired human behaviors and social skills represent their ability to communicate and receive others’ perspectives. According to Landemore and Elster (2021), a student with low social competence has trouble recognizing others’ emotions and desires, explaining personal needs and expectations, finding solutions, collaborating and bargaining, showing emotions, correctly “reading” people and situations, adapting behavior to different social settings, and initiating and cultivating friendships. An individual volunteers if they are given specific goals or functions. Even though services appear to be comparable on the surface, volunteers have varying underlying ideas, intentions, or actual responsibilities. Involvement is motivated by these tasks. If we understand the basic functions of volunteers, we can figure out how to entice them to volunteer and keep them there Cycyota et al. (2016). As these behaviors engage together to form the relationship that promotes civic attitudes, the human attributes of self-esteem and social competence are important. Volunteer work done outside of a formal organization or on an ad hoc rather than a regular may not be considered service activity. However, even as standard volunteering diminishes, intermittent volunteering, which might be for a short length of time, just one activity, or a recurring event, has risen in importance (Valdez et al. 2013).

In Davao City, where the researchers wanted to conduct the study, he observed that some, or to the extent, most of the students in Davao City are no longer drawn into community efforts and also would often not engage themselves in discussions in relation socially related phenomenon because they would just rather be neutral and do their own thing, and he believe that’s something that he should be worried about that since they are the backbone of the economy.

The researchers feel that social competence should be examined and explored further to understand how it affects civic volunteerism. The researcher believes more research is needed on social competence and civic volunteerism among students to provide a local context for the correlation. This is why the researcher wants to study Grade 12 pupils in Davao City’s social competency and civic participation.

METHODS

This study made use of quantitative research design alongside descriptive correlation. According to Marlow (1993), Quantitative research is the systematic examination of social phenomena, using statistical models and mathematical theories to develop, accumulate, and refine the scientific knowledge base. Moreover, correlational research’s goal is to establish connections between two or more variables in the same sample or between the same variables in two populations (Leedy and Ormrod 2010). According to Bhandari (2021), A correlation reflects the strength and/or direction of the relationship between two (or more) variables. The direction of a correlation can be either positive or negative. More so, Correlation may also be calculated using a statistic known as the correlation coefficient. The descriptive-correlational method is suited for this study since it intends to look into the correlation between Social Competence and Civic Engagement of Grade 12 Senior High School Students.

The respondents of the study are from three national high schools in the Division of Davao City, Region XI per each three districts offering a Grade 12 Senior High School Program. These 3 public schools are in the metro. These schools have one of the highest student populations in the city due to their closeness to densely populated urban settlements. When it comes to delivering great education to all its students, the school is regarded to be one of the city’s premier institutions. The respondents of this study are 150 Grade 12 Senior high school students who enrolled for School Year 2021 – 2022. In the selection of respondents, random sampling will be done because the size of respondents is manageable and constitutes a homogeneous social unit. According to The Economic Times (2021), random sampling is an approach in which each sample has an equal chance of being picked. A sample drawn at random is supposed to be a fair representation of the entire population. For this study, random sampling is the ideal option since it eliminates biases and guarantees that the population is appropriately represented. The sample size of 150 is sufficient to statistically calculate the data that will be obtained in preparation for solving the study’s problems.

To gather data for the independent variable of the study, which is Social Competence, the researcher adapted the Social Competence questionnaire of Lavall and Aldeguer (2016). It is a 15-item instrument and has the following indicators: group climate, team cohesion, and social skills. In evaluating the Social Competence of learners, the respondents have used the following in rating the questionnaire: 5 as always; 4 as often; 3 as frequently; 2 as Occasionally, and 1 as rarely. On the other hand, to gather the data for the independent variable which is Civic Volunteerism, the researcher adapted the Civic Volunteerism questionnaire of Hamzah (2015). It is also a 15-item instrument and has the following indicators: knowledge of volunteerism activity, attitude towards volunteer activities, and spirit of Volunteerism. In evaluating the level of civic engagement of learners, the respondents used the following in rating the questionnaire: 5 as always; 4 as often; 3 as frequently; 2 as Occasionally, and 1 as rarely. In summary, there is a total of 30 items in the research instrument. Part 1 has 15 items for the independent variable, and Part 2 has another 15 items for the dependent variable. Experts thoroughly validated and scrutinized these questionnaires. The result of the pilot test signals to conduct of the research properly as it established a reliable internally consistent result. In analyzing the result of the study, the researcher made use of the following statistical tool. Mean was used to determine the extent of social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students. Pearson-rwas utilized to see if there is a link between social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school pupils. This addressed the problem’s third assertion, which was raised in the first chapter of this study.  Lastly, regression analysiswas utilized to determine which among the indicators of social competence influence civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

This section presents the analyses and interpretations of the research problem presented in the previous chapter of this paper based on the statistical results of the data gathered by the researcher. Discussions are presented categorically based on the sequence of the statement of the problem.

Summary of Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Studentsin Davao City

The first objective of this study is to determine the level of social competence among senior high school students in Davao City. Table 1 presents the level of social competence per indicator.

Table 1 Summary of Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Students in Davao City

Indicators	Mean	Description
Group Climate	3.99	High
Team Cohesion	4.34	Very High
Social Skills	3.79	High
Overall	4.04	High

To begin with, the average of the three indicators of social competence is high at 4.04. The highest among the three indicators is team cohesion and the lowest which is still high when it comes to its description is social skills making group climate the middle among the three indicators. All in all, the overall data about the social competence among senior high school students in Davao City implies that senior high school learners manifest such social competence to understand their group climate, work through team cohesion, and develop social skills.

The indicator team cohesion obtained the highest mean score which is equivalent to 4.34 with a verbal description of very high. This implies that the senior high school students have a greater understanding of the strength and unity of having team members. They were also able to establish a positive group climate which in turn lets them share their feelings and problems in a better way. As discussed by Mathieu (2015), the recorded high results in terms of team cohesion by this study are important for the students and play an essential role in their school life, develop their interest in school activities and their success rate may rise when they positively interact with each other. This implies that the students need to continue having good relationships and cooperation with their teammates when working as a group. In reality, team cohesiveness drives students to work together, become team-oriented, and communicate better. Students need to understand that there are things that are easier to achieve when they are being done as a group rather than individually. Moreover, this result gave us the idea that students already have a high level of social competence in terms of group climate but there is still more room for enhancement to make sure that this level will be consistent and will be materialized in most of their collaborative group works and activities.

The indicator of social skills came in last among the three indicators but is still significantly high at 3.79. About the survey results that were conducted, they see the necessity of having social skills to be socially competent when it comes to group work. The numerical data obtained gave us the idea that most students make sure to always be responsible when expressing their points of view. This means that they are highly sensitive when it comes to engaging with other people making sure to always avoid negative communication. This could be further interpreted by realizing that when a majority of people in a group have regard for each other’s feelings and thoughts, it will more likely result in a collectively positive environment.

This implies that senior high school learners in Davao City have understood that they need to acquire such social skills to be socially competent. As technology gives us many avenues to easily and instantly communicate with other people, the students on this survey still showed the importance of observing proper behavior when connecting with other people. Learners were also seen to have high awareness when it comes to understanding others’ perceptions and feelings. Despite the significantly high mean with social skills, there is still room to further increase their level and competence with this indicator. All in all, the level of social competence of senior high school learners in terms of social skills based on the results showed they are highly sensitive and socially responsible.

Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Students in Davao Cityin terms of Group Climate

Table 1.1 shows the level of social competence among senior high school students in Davao City in terms of group climate. This indicator has five statements with mean and description.

Table 1.1 Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Students in Davao City in Terms of Group Climate

Group Climate	Mean	Description
I see my group mates were…
1. open for feedbacking.	3.94	High
2. bringing positive vibes.	4.07	High
3. embodying positive outlook.	3.90	High
4. responsible for their act/decision.	4.02	High
5. good listeners.	4.01	High
Overall Mean	3.98	High

The table shows that among the five statements, the highest mean belongs to the statement “I see that my group mates were bringing positive vibes” with a mean of 4.07 and a verbal description of high. This means that the senior high school students significantly see their groupmates as easy to get along with, radiate cheerfulness, and bring enthusiasm towards them. This further implies that the senior high school students have a great perception of each other and the group they belong to in general. This result furthers the discussions of McClendon and Burlingame (2011) when they claimed that students should perceive their groupmates as someone who bring positive emotions to the team. This further implies that in a group, considering one another’s emotions and feelings is important to maintain a positive group climate as emotions can be contagious. The result gives us an idea that students would prefer to have a group that would bring them optimism rather than negative vibes. They feel more connected and inclined to engage when they don’t feel any uneasiness within the group they belong to. In the context of a classroom setting, one student’s negative aura could result in a ripple effect on the rest of his or her classmates thus affecting the mood of everyone. Schools have been promoting a student-friendly environment conducive to the teaching and learning process.

This result gives us the idea that good listening skills are a prerogative to achieving a favorable group climate. Students are more inclined to communicate whether formal or informal when they can listen very well and are also given the chance to be listened attentively. It is like a give-and-take process; students foster better relationships with their group when they know that others are paying attention to them when they are sharing their point of view about anything. In return, they also wanted to make sure that their group mates were comprehending what they were saying and not just simply letting the words in and out of their heads. Students who are good listeners can also communicate effectively making the group connection seamless.

The statement with the least mean is “I see that my classmates were embodying positive outlook.” even if it was the last in terms of average which is 3.90, it is still verbally described as high. This means that the senior high school students perceive their classmates as having hopeful outlooks about their lives as a student and members of their group. This further implies that in a group, it is important to always radiate an enthusiastic attitude despite all the challenges since it is something others take refuge from. The skills and talents of group members will be of no use if they feel hostility towards each other. The negative feeling in a group can further hinder any cooperation which in turn demobilizes the group dynamics.

The outcome leads us to believe that the pupils as a whole are maintaining optimistic perspectives within their community. They still feel that their classmates bring that energy to lift them during this global pandemic and challenging educational reforms because of the current mode of online teaching. Even though the majority or more than half of the respondents only see each other and communicate with each other through their Google Classrooms and various social media sites, they still feel that their classmates bring that energy. This is very significant because a sudden change in the method of instruction can produce the highest uncertainty, which may in turn demotivate pupils to engage in online classrooms. This very high mean of embodying an optimistic perspective as a component of a group environment signifies that keeping a group with a good demeanor might significantly increase the likelihood of a student developing social competency as an individual.

In general, we can deduce based on the data collected for the first indicator of social competence of the senior high school students in Davao City, which is group climate, that these students have a considerably high average score when measured in terms of their significance. These are references to how open they are to receive input, how positive vibrations they bring with them, how positive a perspective they embody, how responsible they are for the decisions they make, and how excellent of a listener they are.

Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Students in Davao Cityin terms of Team Cohesion

Table 1.2 shows the level of social competence of senior high school students in Davao City in terms of team cohesion. Similar to the previous table, this also has five statements with mean and corresponding descriptions.

Table 1.2 Level of Social Competence of Senior High School Students in Davao City in terms of Team Cohesion

Team Cohesion	Mean	Description
As a member, I…
1. cooperate with my group if needed.	4.39	Very High
2. help with my group in planning.	4.43	Very High
3. stay with my group despite challenges.	4.33	Very High
4. give importance to teamwork	4.44	Very High
5. keep the group intact.	4.13	Very high
Overall Mean	4.34	Very High

Based on the table below, the statement “I give importance to teamwork” has the highest mean average among the five other statements with 4.44 which is also verbally described as Very High. This implies that senior high school students have high regard for teamwork. In addition, senior high school students express a strong preference for a method of operation that requires them to work together toward the accomplishment of their shared objectives. This goes along with the citation of Kao (2019), which states that students prefer a classroom with teamwork because it is an active process that involves attractive forces and collaboration among representatives of a team toward organizational objectives or organization, a driving force for a group that prevents members from having left the team by proactively encouraging them to stay on the team, and the continuous cycle of members of the team working very closely together to accomplish a team goal.

The result indicates that the senior high school students were able to realize what working in a team is as they give much significance to teamwork. The absence of face-to-face learning resulted in limited to no physical social interaction among students belonging to the same section or classroom yet they still see the implication of having a classroom where everyone works together harmoniously for a collective goal.

The statement with the least mean “I keep the group intact,” had a mean of 4.13 and was verbally described as very high. The results suggest that the students played their respective roles to ensure that the group did not break up. They contributed to the group’s schemes, ensuring that they stayed intact. Group work requires one to treat others how they would like to be treated. To keep the group together, the members must compromise some of their comforts to accommodate each other. Group cohesion requires honest feedback and constructive criticism, as Jeong and Kim (2019) described. One, therefore, cannot judge or condemn others for decisions that may not be similar to theirs. Similarly, the members should avoid discussing sensitive matters such as religion, politics, and money as these topics can get heated, leading to a break-up. Keeping the group intact also requires individual growth. The participants need to improve their skills constantly.

It is clear from these findings that the students were concerned about sustaining group cohesion during the activity. When they came together, they had enhanced their skills and were ready to work with others. They avoided topics that could stoke resentment and distrust among them, which could lead to conflict.

Level of Social Competence among Senior High School Students in Davao City in Terms of Social Skills

Table 1.3 shows the level of social competence among senior high school students in Davao City in terms of their social skills. This table also has five statements with a mean and a corresponding description similar to the previous tables.

Table 1.3 Level of Social Competence among Senior High School Students in Davao City in Terms of Social Skills

Social Skills	Mean	Description
As a member, I can…
1. establish a good relationship with others.	4.12	High
2. lead the group.	3.35	Moderate
3. settle group conflict/misunderstanding.	3.67	High
4. Influence to come up with projects.	3.91	High
5. Adjust to varied personalities	3.91	High
Overall Mean	3.79	High

The table shows that among the five statements, the highest mean belonged to the statement, “I can establish a good relationship with others,” with a mean of 4.12 and a verbal description of high. This statement stood out among other statements and entails significant discussion as it is evident that students although perceived by some studies mentioned in the introduction as not spending time socializing, can adjust to varied personalities. This statement demonstrates how the students were capable of forming friendships with other members of their groups. They were very social and extroverted and did not have a problem interacting positively with others. Friendship and teamwork go hand in hand, and for the group to work as one unit, there should be some mutual respect among the members. Friendship forges loyalty and trust within the participants. The group members work together towards a common goal rather than compete against each other. Wagner (2019) argues that teamwork creates long-lasting friendships among the members. The team members spend so much time together working on their objectives that they bond on a personal level.

From the above discussions, it is understandable that the senior high school students had an easy time establishing friendships with their team members. This could be because they spent a lot of time together and finally got to know each other better. The friendships were commendable as they produced better results in the group work. They also became empathetic and understanding to each other. The group members may not have been best friends, but they were undoubtedly acquaintances. Friendship among the students is a sign of good social skills.

The statement with the lowest mean was, “I can lead the group.” It had a verbal description of moderate and a mean of 3.35. These results can be translated directly to mean that the students were not comfortable being part of the group’s leadership. They mostly preferred being members who were being assigned tasks rather than the ones giving them. The students may have wanted to be in the background to avoid leadership responsibilities. Olesen (2020) describes the role of a group leader as vital to the group’s success. The leader must manage and control all the group’s schemes. This is done by motivating and following up on the progress of the individual participants. The leader is also required to solve problems and conflicts that arise while enacting the objectives.

That is true.

It was observed that the senior high school students were afraid of leadership in group work. They favored the positions of membership over leadership. The students were terrified of leadership as they were not ready to be responsible for the results received by the groups. Therefore, the teachers should ensure that every student has a role in the group. This action will make them more responsible and instill leadership qualities in them. The students need to realize that anyone can be a leader and that it is not meant for specific people.

Summary of the Level of Civic Volunteerism of Senior High School Studentsin Davao City

The first objective of this variable is to determine the level of Civic Volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City. Table 2 presents the level of Civic Volunteerism per indicator.

Table 2 Summary of the Level of Civic Volunteerism of Senior High School Students in Davao City

Indicators	Mean	Description
Knowledge of Volunteerism Activity	4.09	High
Attitude Towards Volunteer Activity	4.05	High
Spirit of Volunteerism	3.92	High
Overall Mean	4.02	High

The three indicators had an average of 4.02, which was verbally described as high. The highest indicator was knowledge of volunteerism activity, while the lowest was the spirit of volunteerism—this left attitude towards volunteer activities with the middle score. The results indicate that the students have a reasonable amount of knowledge of volunteering activities. They equally have a positive attitude when doing these activities. Their spirit of volunteerism is also high, as they are willing to participate when the chance presents itself.

The highest indicator was knowledge of volunteerism activity, with a mean of 4.09. It was verbally described as high by the students. These findings infer that the students were well educated by their teachers and their society on how and when volunteering activities were carried out. They were also well informed about the importance of volunteering to the community and an individual. According to Yoo and Choi (2021), students who dedicated their time to helping society were found to be well-organized and very social. Such students had an easy time interacting with strangers and had better mental health than their peers who did not volunteer. Volunteer students had a purpose and felt accomplished every time they gave back to society.

The results from this indicator imply that the students were well informed on volunteering activities. The activities were communicated in full detail, providing the possible areas they could volunteer. They were also aware of the benefits of volunteering, both in the here and now as well as for their lives in the future. The students were aware that participating in activities that required regularity, time, energy, and financial investment made them better people overall, and volunteering was one such activity. This information is vitally important since it enlightens people on the activities in which they will participate later in life. Students in their senior year of high school were consequently mature enough to donate their time.

The indicator spirit of volunteerism has a mean of 3.92 It was also verbally described as high, indicating that the students have a strong desire to volunteer. They not only felt obliged to do these activities but also did with a lot of optimism. This means that the students went the extra mile further to ensure that the community service undertakings were a great success. They made it their aim to see them through to the end. Authors such as Mallow & Peng (2019) postulate that the spirit of volunteering is a calling; it is done without expecting compensation of form. Most volunteers do not receive recognition in their societies or even a mere “thank you”. Therefore, the spirit of volunteerism needs to be cultivated early in students.

Volunteerism has often been thought of as an activity for people of a particular religious group, economic class, or educational background. However, this is a misconception as anyone can learn and acquire these attributes. The spirit of volunteerism can be transferred from one person to another, which means that having it in a few students is good as they can influence others. Chen & Liang (2020) demonstrate the importance of volunteerism as a way for people to help others and help themselves. The spirit of volunteering does this by bringing friends and families together. Students with the spirit of volunteerism were strongly motivated in everything they did.

The result indicates that the senior high school students’ high spirit of volunteerism allowed them to be physically and mentally involved with voluntary firms and initiatives. They had their hearts set on making their community a better place. It can be decided that they craved to be a part of the volunteers whenever they could. They kept the fire burning by spreading the spirit of volunteerism to their friends and families. The students were always psyched up when it was time to volunteer.

Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City terms of Knowledge of Volunteerism Activity

Table 2.1 shows the level of civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City regarding their knowledge of volunteerism activity. This indicator has 5 statements with a mean and a description.

Table 2.1 Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City terms of Knowledge of Volunteerism Activity

Knowledge of Volunteerism Activity	Mean	Description
As a student, I know…
1.  what volunteerism activity is all about	3.88	High
2. that in volunteerism activity, there is no monetary/material reward	3.99	High
3. that in volunteerism activities, we are not forced to participate	4.15	High
4. that in volunteerism activities is taught and encouraged in school	4.11	High
5.  that volunteerism activity can help the community	4.31	High
Overall Mean	4.09	High

The table shows that among the five statements, the highest mean is the statement, “As a student, I know that volunteerism activity can help the community”, with a mean of 4.31 and a verbal description. This means that the students were aware of volunteerism’s benefits to the community. They were informed of how the society grew from their services. The students need to be given detailed explanations of how other people benefit from their help. This can be discussed during group sessions or classrooms where the students become informed of the advantages of giving back to society. The result supports the study of Ivonchyk (2019) wherein in his study, he raises awareness of the importance of voluntary activities to the community. Through the writings, it is explained that community service reduces crime and violence. Most civilians who engage in crime do this to provide for their basic needs. Therefore, volunteering is a proper investment in the community as it curbs such vices. The people who cannot provide for themselves are offered the basic requirements by volunteers and do not see the need to engage in crime anymore. The result is that the people have a safe environment.

The senior high school was knowledgeable of the positive impact that volunteering brought to society. They knew that their services contributed to the community and national development by decreasing the crime rate and thus creating a sound neighborhood for themselves and others. The students also acknowledged that volunteering made the less privileged feel included and part of society, not neglected.

The statement with the least means among other statements is “As a student, I know what volunteerism is all about”, with a mean of 3.88 and a verbal description of high. This means that the students were well informed by their teachers and guardians on what volunteering entails. They were informed of what needed to be done during these activities and how they should conduct themselves. They were also well aware of the benefits of volunteering to their society and themselves as young adults. Yoo & Choi (2021) further describe volunteer students as independent with outstanding social skills. Such students had an easy time making new friends and socializing with new people at events. Moreover, they hardly suffered from depression and anxiety and had good self-esteem. These students were purpose-driven and knew their exact goals in life.

The findings of this indicator suggest that the students had a good understanding of the many volunteering opportunities. They were given every piece of information regarding the activities, including a rundown of the benefits and drawbacks associated with taking part. They discussed the types of services they would provide, how they would provide those services, and, lastly, the frequency with which they would do it. The fact that there was no payment was made clear to the pupils, but they were aware that the abilities they gained during this time were extremely valuable. The students gained an advantage by learning that their willingness to serve was a quality that would increase their chances of getting employment and scholarships.

Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City in Terms of Attitude Towards Volunteer Activities

Table 2.2 shows the level of civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City regarding their attitude toward volunteer activities.

Table 2.2 Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City in terms on Attitude Towards Volunteer Activities

Attitude Towards Volunteer Activities	Mean	Description
I believe that voluntary activity…
1. makes me more responsible.	4.17	High
2. is expecting less or absence of rewards	3.96	High
3. we can find more opportunities to volunteer	3.85	High
4. makes community and me get closer	4.15	High
5. makes me a concerned individual on the needs of the society	4.12	High
Overall Mean	4.05	High

The table shows that among the five statements, the highest mean belongs to the statement, “I believe that voluntary activity makes me responsible” with a mean of 4.17 and a verbal description of high. This implies that the students felt that engaging in voluntary activities made them more accountable and in control of their affairs. In parallel to this, these responsible students have good mental health and increased self-confidence. They are less likely to suffer from depression and are more physically fit. These traits encourage a person to keep working on themselves for self-improvement. This is implicated by the writings of Guiney and Machado (2018), who state that volunteering in the community benefits one with skills that make whole rounded and complete.

Ultimately, the students were actively involved in voluntary services as it made them better people. They became more responsible and confident and had better mental health. To be a good volunteer, one has to be able to look after oneself before one begins looking after people, animals, and the environment.

The statement with the least mean “I believe that through a voluntary activity we can find more opportunities to volunteer”, had a mean of 3.85 and was described verbally as high. This implies that the students found more opportunities to volunteer every time. By participating in one activity, more chances presented themselves. Many people have a hard time how and where they would start volunteering as many organizations and websites claim to need volunteers. It reverberates the study of Barge (2015) wherein based on his study; he simplified the search for places to volunteer. Their research outlines a few steps to be followed before deciding where to volunteer. The first and most important is deciding where they want to volunteer and the skills they will offer. They then need to determine the frequency of their services before finally approaching a volunteering area to sign up. The more one volunteers, the more they get to know of more similar opportunities.

It was discovered through the result of this study that the senior high school students who participated in community service regularly obtained more possibilities than the other pupils. They racked up more hours on the job and increased their understanding of the types of customers who needed their services. They also engaged in conversation with individuals who had been working in the industry for a longer period. Because these individuals were the organizers and founders of various volunteer activities, they kept the students informed whenever possibilities arose.

Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City in terms of Spirit of Volunteerism

Table 2.3 shows the level of civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City in terms of their spirit of volunteerism. This indicator has 5 statements with mean and description.

Table 2.3 Level of Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City in terms of Spirit of Volunteerism

Spirit of Volunteerism	Mean	Description
1. I feel that voluntary work is a noble practice.	4.02	High
2. I know voluntary work is parallel with the aim in my life.	3.85	High
3. I volunteer because I feel that social responsibility is important to help the community.	4.04	High
4. I volunteer as I am interested in community service.	3.89	High
5. I plan to involve in more voluntary works	3.78	High
Overall Mean	3.92	High

The table shows that among the five statements, the highest mean belongs to the statement, “I volunteer because I feel that social responsibility is important to help the community” with a mean of 4.04 and a verbal description of high. This demonstrates that the student was aware of their positions in the community and that they felt obligated to fulfill their obligations. They are aware of the significance of providing voluntary services to others and are prepared to lend a hand in achieving these goals. Social responsibility refers to the ability of institutions and organizations to be of positive value to the society. Being an academic institution, the school should produce individuals ready to be an excellent addition to the community. Boğan and Dedeoglu (2019) expound on the different types of social responsibilities. Through their work, they explain the environmental, ethical, philanthropic, and economic responsibilities of the members of society. For students, social responsibility may imply that the students have to be ready for the consequences of their actions. Their responsibilities include caring for the cultural, social, and ecological aspects of the society. Students, therefore, feel obligated to fulfill their commitments to become valued members of the community.

Based on the results, it is clear that the students felt bound to their social responsibilities due to the numerous advantages to their societies and themselves. Their social responsibilities enabled them to acquire new moral values. In addition to this, they were able to serve others while conserving their community’s cultural, economic, and ecological aspects, just like responsible citizens accomplishing their civic duties. Fulfilling their social responsibilities makes students beneficial to others.

The statement with the lowest mean was “I plan to involve in more voluntary work”. The statement had a mean of 3,78 and was verbally described as high. This suggests that some students will continue to think about participating in volunteer work either in the near or far future. On the other hand, some of them did not anticipate that they would still be volunteering in the coming years. They would presumably cease to concentrate on the needs of others in the area. Bang, Won, and Park (2020) explain lack of time as the most significant challenge to volunteerism in most countries. People are so busy with their day-to-day activities that they hardly find time to volunteer. They are occupied with their businesses, careers, education, and own and cannot find time to join these initiatives. Volunteerism is time-consuming and equally engaging, which means that some people even opt to become volunteers. It becomes their daily chore as there is still a lot of work that needs to be done with very few people to help.

Based on the gathered data and interpretation of the results, some of the senior high school students still entertained the idea of volunteering at some point in the future, while others did not. Those who did not foresee themselves continuing with these activities probably believed that they would be too busy to find the time to give back to the community if they did continue with them. Volunteer work is important, and despite how busy they may be, they should make plans to accomplish at least some of it once a year. It is important to make the most of the time that is available during weekdays, weekends, and holidays to make progress toward these objectives.

Relationship Between Social Competence and Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City

The third objective was an analysis of the relationship between the level of social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City. Computing for the Pearson r correlation between the total scores for each student’s responses is presented and shown in Table 3.

Table 3 Relationship Between Social Competence and Civic Volunteerism among Senior High School Students in Davao City

	Fact Checking of Senior High School Learners
	r	P	Decision on Ho	Interpretation
Internet Dependence	.671	<.001	Reject	There is a significant strong positive correlation

**Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level

The results indicated that the relationship between the level of social competence and civic volunteerism of senior high school students in Davao City showed a strong positive correlation and highly significant result. As shown in the table, the correlation or r value is 0.671, which implies a strong positive correlation between the level of social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students. This also means that whenever there is an increase in the level of social competence also increases the level of civic volunteerism of senior high school students.

The data has a corresponding p-value of 0.000 indicating that there is enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis of no relationship between the two variables. The alpha level of significance, then the relationship is significant. Moreso, there is a significant relationship between the level of social competence and civic volunteerism among senior high school students in Davao City. With that said, the null hypothesis of no relationship between the two variables.  Therefore, there is a significant relationship between students’ social competence and civic volunteerism.

The findings also suggest that the social competency of high school students played a role in the civic volunteerism of senior high school students in the city of Davao. This indicates the importance of frequency. More opportunities for students to interact with one another and contribute to projects as part of a team will increase the likelihood that they will put in the effort required to complete assignments. Individuals who possess social competence are better equipped to participate effectively and constructively in social and civic life. This ability is predicated on their knowledge of social and political concepts.

Furthermore, volunteering and social competence go hand in hand. One goal of social improvement is to promote communal collaboration through volunteerism. Most activities would be impossible to provide without the help of volunteers Valdez et al. (2013). Participation helps bring a variety of social work goals and concepts to life, such as progressive politics, service, humanity, and independence. Volunteerism among adolescents is also a crucial component of successful youth teams. Adolescents can use this service to improve their social, emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and moral skills. Pro-social activities, such as volunteer service, are linked to adolescent psychological well-being (Hill & Den Dulk, 2013). Adolescents from all around the world are actively involved in volunteer work. By extending the concept, formal teamwork activities and informal aid to family, friends, and neighbors can be included.

It can be deduced from all of this that senior high school students who have a higher level of social competence are more likely to participate in activities that require them to give back to their communities. Students who have developed their social competency are better able to connect with their classmates and other members of the group to which they now belong. Students who demonstrate social competence are more likely to feel like they belong in their schools and communities, which in turn encourages them to participate in a wider range of extracurricular activities. They will have the drive to actively play a role and participate in different volunteer activities as a result of the various skills that they develop concerning social competence during their senior year of high school. This is true regardless of whether they were asked to engage in the activity or whether they just wanted to initiate it themselves. Such character is built upon the idea that learners are not just passive to different social issues around them but are finding ways how they can contribute to address such concerns.

Indicators of Social Competence that Significantly Influence Civic Volunteerism of Senior High School Students in Davao City

The fourth objective was an analysis of which indicators of social competence significantly influence the civic volunteerism of senior high school students in Davao City. The Multiple Linear Regression using the Stepwise Method was used at a 0.05 level of significance.

The regression analysis shows that the social competence of senior high school students about their team cohesion (B, 0.45; p<0.05), social skills (B, 0.29; p<0.05), group climate (B, 0.14; p<0.05) significantly predicts the influence of social competence of senior high school students in Davao city. The result further shows that for every unit increase in the social competence of senior high school students regarding team cohesion, social skills, and group climate would significantly increase by 0.45, 0.29, and 0.14 units respectively as represented in the regression model: B = 0.40 + 0.45 (team cohesion) + 0.29 (social skills) + 0.14 (group climate) at a 0.05 level of significance. Hence, the null hypothesis that social competence is not significantly related to civic volunteerism of senior high school students in Davao City has been rejected.

Table 4 Regression Analysis on the Significant Contribution of the Indicators of Social Competence on Civic volunteerism of Senior High School Students in Davao City

Civic Volunteerism
Internet Dependence	Unstandardized Coefficient		Standardized Coefficient
	B	SE	Beta	t	Sig.	Decision	Interpretation
Constant	.40	.33		1.23	<.220	Do not reject	Not Significant
Group climate	.14	.07	.13	2.02	<.05	Reject	Significant
Team Cohesion	.45	.08	.42	5.97	<.05	Reject	Significant
Social Skills	.29	.07	.31	4.45	<.05	Reject	Significant

The results also revealed that team cohesion is the best predictor of students’ civic volunteerism followed by social skills and then by group climate. Furthermore, the findings suggested that there are still existing factors aside from social competence that can impact the level of the students’ civic volunteerism. Similarly, the findings also suggested that aside from group climate, team cohesion, and social skills, other components of social competence can affect students’ perspectives on civic volunteerism.

The findings suggest that there are still existing factors aside from social competence that can impact the level of the students’ civic volunteerism. Similarly, the findings also suggested that aside from group climate, team cohesion, and social skills, other components of social competence can affect students’ perspectives on civic volunteerism. Researchers studying the implications of social competence and civic volunteerism among students. Despite other researchers seeing volunteerism to be declining, it still holds a very important element to have a progressive and thriving society. Volunteerism plays a substantially bigger part in our civic life and helps community-based organizations have an influence, linking people together and helping both parties (Martinson & Halpern, 2011).

Furthermore, strengthening civic activities can assist participating individuals by increasing skills such as judgment, meeting planning and convenes, and presentation skills (Ballard 2014). These results implied that for students, it is important for their social skills, especially when working in groups so that they can effectively offer or give voluntary activities for the community. Moreover, this has implications not only for educational institutions but also for the community the students are living in; all stakeholders must show that keeping a good social relationship with others is important for the students to realize that such value is necessary. When students possess effective social skills, know how to efficiently work in a group, and can sympathize with others, then their perspective on civic volunteerism could improve.

These results implied that for students, it is important to their social skills especially when working in groups so that they can effectively offer or give voluntary activities for the community. Moreover, this has implications not only for educational institutions but also for the community the students live; all stakeholders must show that keeping a good social relationship with others is important for the students to realize that such value is necessary. When students possess effective social skills, know how to efficiently work in a group, and can sympathize with others, then their perspective on civic volunteerism could improve.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the findings of the study, the following conclusions are presented:

Social skills among the students in the schools can easily be predicted and can be taught with the proper curriculum development and social learning training. Many schools are teaching and helping students learn social skills and competence through curricular or co-curricular activities. Students themselves also feel the desire to show socially interactive and enhanced skills. Students also showed teams or groups based on social dexterity that were showing coordinating, motivating, and caring behaviors.

Similarly, they were passionate about community-based work without any reward or compensation and perceived their teammates or companions as someone who brought positive emotions to them. The research provides a different narrative suggesting that volunteerism is still thriving among young people, especially at the level of senior high school students. Students were comfortable working in groups, considering one another’s emotions and feelings, which is an important indicator of social acceptance in society and maintains a positive group climate. With this enhanced group or team demeanor, students showed coordination assistance and used effective and appropriate interactions with others.

The students showed good knowledge of civic volunteerism with a positive attitude. However, the voluntary spirit of the students was not enough to drive them towards such activities and the needed motivation and encouragement. Since their knowledge of volunteer activity was high, a little encouragement from the environment may help them adopt the concept and more profound purpose of civic voluntarism and become more socially active and participating community members.

A significant relationship exists between social competence and civic volunteerism, and students can socialize and work in a group with a commitment to that activity and produce even better results. The statistical significance shows the likelihood that a relationship between two or more variables is not a matter of chance only. One of the causes of advancement in social competence and the knowledge of civic volunteerism among the students in the schools may lead to increased future participation in the community and social services, which may eventually provide better humanitarian to the societies and even better politicians to the world.

There is a significant influence of social competence on civic volunteerism that provides confidence and conviction towards group working and team cohesion and further enhances the individual social skills of the students. The impact can be seen in a cyclic pattern where participation in civic volunteerism enhances social skills, and the students with enhanced and competent social skills wish to participate even more in such activities confidently. Thus, the growth and improvement of students’ group environment, coalition workings, and socially interactive settings may generate more civic volunteerism and vice versa.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the findings and conclusions, the following recommendations are put forward to those concerned:

The Department of Education must create programs and training to strengthen the individual social skills among the student body, particularly group learning or team build-up, which are highly beneficial in sustaining the students’ social skills, knowledge, and understanding. The school must also aim to solidify social competence skills already embedded in the current curriculum and 21^st-century skills.

Moreover, Social Studies teachers must see to it that teachers should always integrate into their topics how volunteerism can benefit the students in many ways such as creating social connections with others, building a good mind and body, and bringing joy and fulfillment in life. They must ensure that students are knowledgeable on the matter, which may lead them to volunteer, increasing social involvement and a sense of connection to society and the community.

Lastly, future researchers may conduct more studies to determine how socially energizing students can influence other students and create awareness and content knowledge on this matter. A qualitative or mixed research study is highly recommended. They may also use the results as a basis for future related research.

REFERENCES

1. Ballard, P. J. (2014). What Motivates Youth Civic Involvement? Journal of Adolescent Research, 29(4), 439–463. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558413520224
2. Bang, H., Won, D., Park, S. (2020). School engagement, self-esteem, and depression of adolescents: The role of sport participation and volunteering activity and gender differences. Children and Youth Services Review, 113, 105012.
3. Barge, M. A. (2015). How to create successful Community Service Projects. How to Create Successful Community Service Projects. Retrieved April 17, 2024, from https://blog.prepscholar.com/community-service-projects
4. Bhandari, P. (2021, July 7) An Introduction to Correlational Research. Scribbr.https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/correlational-research/
5. Boğan, E., Dedeoğlu, B. B. (2019). The influence of corporate social responsibility in hospitality establishments on students’ level of commitment and intention to recommend. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport Tourism Education, 25, 100205.
6. Chen, S., Liang, W. (2020). On the Influence of Volunteerism upon College Students’ Moral Identity. Journal of Contemporary Educational Research, 4(6).
7. Cycyota, C. S., Ferrante, C. J., Schroeder, J. M. (2016). Corporate social responsibility and employee volunteerism: What do the best companies do? Business Horizons, 59(3), 321–329. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2016.01.004
8. Guiney, H. Machado, L. (2018). Volunteering in the community: Potential benefits for cognitive aging. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 73(3), 399-408.
9. Hill, B. M. (2013). Essays on volunteer mobilization in peer production. Dspace.mit.edu. https://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/86240
10. Ivonchyk, M. (2019). The costs and benefits of volunteering programs in the public sector: A longitudinal study of municipal governments. The American Review of Public Administration, 49(6), 689-703.
11. Jeong, H. J., Kim, M. H. (2019). HGGC: A hybrid group recommendation model considering group cohesion. Expert Systems with Applications, 136, 73-82.
12. Kao, C. C. (2019). Development of Team Cohesion and Sustained Collaboration Skills with the Sport Education Model. Sustainability, 11(8), 2348. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11082348
13. Landemore, H., Elster, J. (2012). Collective Wisdom: Principles and Mechanisms. In Google Books. Cambridge University Press. https://books.google.com.pk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=XcDhY1edp9oC&oi=fnd&pg=PA368&dq=Social+Competence&ots=5AS3TI1d_D&sig=7_fzKxB9W_N655A0Y_6X4rJboAI&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Social%20Competence&f=false
14. Leedy, P. D., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Practical research. Planning and design (11thed.).Boston, MA: Pearson. (2018). 2, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2018.1.2.15
15. Leganés-Lavall, E. N., & Pérez-Aldeguer, S. (2016b). Social Competence in Higher Education Questionnaire (CCSES): Revision and Psychometric Analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01484
16. Leganes-Lavall, E. N., and Perez-Aldeguer, S. (2016). Social competence in higher education questionnaire: Revision and psychometric analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, online publication
17. Marlow, C. (1993). Research Methods for Generalist Social Work. Brooks/Cole Publishing Company. ISBN 0534148387, 9780534148386, (330)
18. Mallow, M. S., & Peng, Y. S. (2019). Is The Spirit of Volunteerism Dead? An Analysis. Perdana: International Journal of Academic Research, 6(1), 19-29.
19. Martinson, M., & Halpern, J. (2011). Ethical implications of the promotion of elder volunteerism: A critical perspective. Journal of Aging Studies, 25(4), 427–435. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaging.2011.04.003
20. Mathieu, J. E., Kukenberger, M. R., D’Innocenzo, L., & Reilly, G. (2015). Modeling reciprocal team cohesion–performance relationships, as impacted by shared leadership and members’ competence. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(3), 713.
21. McClendon, D.T., & Burlingame, G.M. (2011). Group climate: Construct in search of clarity. In R.K. Conyne (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of group counseling (pp. 164-181). New York, New York: Oxford University Press.
22. Noh, N. Awang. (2020). Volunteerism declined among university students: Why do they … – researchgate.net. researchgate.net. Retrieved April 17, 2024, from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Normah-Awang-Noh/publication/350088035_VOLUNTEERISM_DECLINED_AMONG_UNIVERSITY_STUDENTS/links/6050217092851cd8ce440fd3/VOLUNTEERISM-DECLINED-AMONG-UNIVERSITY-STUDENTS.pdf
23. Olesen, M. (2020). Cooperative collaboration in the hybrid space of Google Docs-based group work. Education Sciences, 10(10), 269.
24. Sparks, S. D. (2018, July 17). Volunteerism Declined Among Young People. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/volunteerism-declined-among-young-people/2018/07
25. The Economic Times. (2021). What is Random Sampling? Definition of Random Sampling, Random Sampling Meaning. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/random-sampling
26. Valdez, C. R., Shewakramani, V., Goldberg, S., & Padilla, B. (2013). Parenting Influences on Latino Children’s Social Competence in the First Grade: Parental Depression and Parent Involvement at Home and School. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 44(5), 646–657. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-013-0358-x
27. Valdez, C. R., Shewakramani, V., Goldberg, S., & Padilla, B. (2013). Parenting Influences on Latino Children’s Social Competence in the First Grade: Parental Depression and Parent Involvement at Home and School. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 44(5), 646–657. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-013-0358-x
28. Wagner, L. (2019). Good character is what we look for in a friend: Character strengths are positively related to peer acceptance and friendship quality in early adolescents. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 39(6), 864-903.
29. Yoo, S. Y., Choi, E. J., & Choi, Y. J. (2021). Nursing students’ extracurricular activity experiences of suicide prevention volunteering: A qualitative study. Nurse Education Today, 102, 104912.