HE 382
VOLUNTEER TEACHERS
by Ann Hancook, Extension Specialist, Program Organization
Volunteer teachers are important to community organizations such as church groups, service clubs, 4-H clubs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and Extension Homemaker clubs. These groups rely on volunteer teachers to pass on what they have learned to other group members.
■	A Sunday School teacher tells the story of creation to fifteen preschoolers.
■	A 4-H leader demonstrates how to wire an electrical box.
■	A member of League of Women Voters explains the structure of city government at a Rotary Club meeting.
■	An Extension Homemaker teaches her club the elements of basic nutrition.
Limited professional staff can be multiplied twentyfold with the assistance of volunteers.
But what’s in it for you?
Why volunteer to teach?
A professional teacher could teach the program. In fact, if the subject matter is technical, a professional may be needed. But in many cases, it is more advantageous to have a group member do the teaching. A peer is often better accepted and more aware of the needs and interests of the group.
Your rewards for teaching are:
■	improved ability as a public speaker;
■	sense of accomplishment;
■	new knowledge; and
■	new friends.
You—the volunteer teacher—are needed.
Suppose you have just said, “Yes, I’ll teach that class or lesson,”—what is next?
Your Responsibility
You are probably aware that professional teachers spend four or more years in college learning methods of teaching. You may not have had this op-
portunity to “learn” how to teach. In addition, you may not know the subject as well as professionals do. You may have worries such as:
“How can I teach a forty-five minute program on ‘Communication in Marriage’ if I am not a teacher and I know so little about the subject?”
This question is legitimate. Remember, you are not expected to be an expert in the field. Your role as a volunteer teacher implies:
■	a willingness to serve as the facilitator for the group.
■	an ability to involve the audience in the learning process.
As the facilitator for the group, you set up a learning environment. If someone in the audience knows more about the subject than you do, ask them to share their knowledge.
Learner Responsibility
Learning is a shared process. Therefore, all of the responsibility for learning is not on your shoulders. In informal learning situations, the learner carries much of the responsibility. Unlike the classroom situation, these learners choose to attend the class or meeting. Their reasons for attending may vary greatly, but their presence in the class signals a willingness to share the responsibility.
As the teacher you:
1.	analyze group needs;
2.	find information;
3.	organize information;
4.	present information;
5.	facilitate learning.
But the learner must:
1.	analyze his/her own needs;
2.	customize objectives to those needs;
3.	apply the information “at home.”
Cooperative Extension Service, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana