|
Service Learning
Benefits of Service-Learning
For Students
For the University
For Communities
Resources
for Students
The COVE at Colgate University
Upstate Institute
Field School
Resources
for Faculty
Current Service-Learning Courses
Links
Resources for the Community
Definition of Community-Based Learning
“Community-Based Learning (CBL):
Engagement in
the community as an integrated part of an
academic course. The course is shaped by
active reflection on the part of the
student.
Service-learning:
Synonymous with
community-based learning; service-learning
is a teaching and learning strategy that
integrates meaningful community service with
instruction and reflection to enrich the
learning experience, teach civic
responsibility, and strengthen communities.”
(St. Lawrence University Community Partner
Handbook, 2006)
“Community-based
learning is a teaching methodology and
philosophy of reciprocal learning designed
to put theory into practice by combining the
elements of academic study with interactive
community placements or research.” (http://www.smith.edu/sos/cbl.htm,
accessed 02/11/08 )
“Definitions of community based learning
vary considerably. At its base, community
based learning enhances education
by connecting students and community
members in reciprocal relationships
of service and learning. Through
service-focused experiential learning,
community based learning pedagogies engage
students in their own education. The result
is the formation of active learners
and leaders with life-long
connections to fellow students,
their communities, and the civic world
outside the classroom.” (http://www.amherst.edu/~outreach/community.html
)
Service-learning combines service objectives
with learning objectives with the intent
that the activity change both the recipient
and the provider of the service. This is
accomplished by combining service tasks with
structured opportunities that link the task
to self-reflection, self-discovery, and the
acquisition and comprehension of values,
skills, and knowledge content.
In 1990, the Corporation for National and Community
Service conception of service-learning said
that it:
-
Promotes learning through active participation in
service experiences
-
Provides structured time for students to reflect by
thinking, discussing and/or writing
about their service experience
-
Provides an opportunity for students to use skills and
knowledge in real-life situations
-
Extends learning beyond the classroom and into the
community Fosters a sense of caring for
others (as adapted from the National and
Community Service Act of 1990)
The Service Learning Framework (Duckenfield & Wright)
-
Preparation
-
Action
-
Reflection
-
Celebration
Service-learning is a "course-based,
credit-bearing educational experience that
allows students to (a) participate in an
organized service activity that meets
identified community needs and (b) reflect
on the service activity in such a way as to
gain further understanding of course
content, a broader appreciation of the
discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic
responsibility" 1
As a form of experiential education,
service-learning shares similarities with
internships, field education, practica, and
voluntary service. Furco (1996) places these
forms of education on a continuum. At one
end of the continuum are internships and
practica, with their primary focus on the
students' career development. At the other
end are volunteer activities, in which the
emphasis is on the civic involvement and the
services provided to recipients. Furco
locates service-learning in the middle of
the continuum, and states that it is unique
in its "intention to equally benefit the
provider and the recipient of the service as
well as to ensure equal focus on both the
service being provided and the learning that
is occurring" 2
Service-learning means a method under which
students learn and develop through
thoughtfully organized service that: is
conducted in and meets the needs of a
community and is coordinated with an
institution of higher education and with the
community; helps foster civic
responsibility; is integrated into and
enhances the academic curriculum of the
students enrolled; and includes structured
time for students to reflect on the service
experience.3
Principles of Good Practice in Combining
Service and Learning
An effective and sustained program:
-
Engages people in responsible and
challenging actions for the common good.
-
Provides structured opportunities for
people to reflect critically on their
service experience.
-
Articulates clear service and learning
goals for everyone involved.
-
Allows for those with needs to define
those needs.
Clarifies the responsibilities of each
person and organization involved.
-
Matches service providers and service
needs through a process that recognizes
changing circumstances.
Expects genuine, active, and sustained
organizational commitment.
-
Includes training, supervision,
monitoring, support, recognition, and
evaluation to meet service and learning
goals.
-
Insures that the time commitment for
service and learning is flexible,
appropriate, and in the best interest of
all involved.
-
Is committed to program participation by
and with diverse populations.4
Principles of Good Practice in Community
Service-Learning Pedagogy
-
Academic credit is for learning, not for
service.
-
Do not compromise academic rigor.
-
Set learning goals for students.
-
Establish criteria for the selection of
community service placements.
-
Provide educationally sound mechanisms
to harvest the community learning.
-
Minimize the distinction between the
student’s community learning role and
the classroom learning role.
-
Re-think the faculty instructional role.
-
Be prepared for uncertainty and
variation in student learning outcomes.
-
Maximize the community responsibility
orientation of the course.5
Benefits of Service-Learning
For Students
Service-learning can help students develop
the habit of critical reflection, deepen
their understanding of course content,
enable them to integrate theory with
practice, sharpen their abilities to solve
problems creatively, enhance their skills in
working collaboratively and learn about
human difference and commonality.
For
the University
Service-learning can help universities
increase their responsiveness to society’s
needs. Often, this enhances the public image
of universities and can positively impact
the curriculum, student recruitment, alumni
relations, the sense of community on campus,
and the success of fund-raising efforts.
Service-learning can strengthen an
educational institution by helping to
fulfill its mission in several ways:
-
rich opportunities for renewing
teaching, research, and service
activities
-
increased opportunities to engage
students of all learning styles
-
additional experiential learning
settings
-
increased access to community partners
as co-teachers
-
improved town-gown relationships
-
retention of multi-ethnic students.
For Communities
Service-learning frequently builds lasting
ties between universities and the
communities in which they are located.
Community agencies highly value the
expertise of college students not only for
their enthusiasm but because they are eager
to explore the intersection of theory and
practice, can be cultivated as potentially
lifelong volunteers, and are likely to apply
their professional skills to a service
commitment.
Community benefits include:
-
increased efficiency, quality of
services or extent of services offered
by university-assisted agencies
-
increased access to university resources
(e.g., facilities, expertise, programs)
-
improved relationships with the
university.
(Taken from
Faculty Handbook for Service-Learning at
University of Maryland.)
Resources
for Students
The COVE at Colgate University
Upstate Institute
Field School
Resources
for Faculty
Spring 2008 Service-Learning Courses
GEOG 316 Medical Geography and Disease
Ecology
Ellen Percy
Kraly
This course considers patterns of spatial
and social distribution of disease and of
health and medical resources. Alternative
analytical approaches to describing and
explaining these patterns of distribution
are demonstrated. Selected topics include
disease systems and disease ecology, the
population analysis of mortality and
morbidity, environmental influences on
health, and the distribution and
accessibility of health resources. Examples
are drawn from both contemporary and
historical societies throughout the world.
This class will be working with the Mohawk
Valley Perinatal Network in conducting 8-10
focus groups around Oneida County on
perinatal health and access to medical
services.
GEOG 317 Dispossession, Dislocation, and
Disease: Geographies of Population
Vulnerability
Ellen Percy
Kraly
This course integrates geographic
perspectives on population dynamics, social
justice, and human rights to consider
theoretical, policy, and ethical dimensions
of population vulnerability. Beginning
initially from the perspective of population
geography, the concept of population
vulnerability refers to populations and
communities that suffer heightened risks of
morbidity, mortality, dislocation from home
and homelands, dispossession from cultural
and environmental resources, and risks to
family welfare and formation. Analytic
approaches to the geographic study of
vulnerable populations are evaluated in
relationship to selected cases such as
displaced populations and refugees, health
and health care in conflict and
post-conflict societies, and legacies of
dispossession of indigenous peoples and the
Stolen Generation of Australia. Students
participate in local and international
service learning projects in relationship to
the themes of the course. This course is
also listed as
PEAC
317.
This class will be working with the Mohawk
Valley Adult Learning Center in providing
support for ESL classes and conducting a
family photograph project with refugee
families.
EDUC 418 Seminar on High-Needs
Schools
John Palmer
This seminar is designed for students who
aspire to become leaders in the field of
education and beyond. Through an in-depth
investigation and analysis of high-needs
schools, students learn about the "problems"
facing such schools. The seminar also
focuses on challenging views that are unduly
pessimistic or do not fully represent the
complexity of high-needs schools,
communities, and their children. Students
are involved in service-learning projects
with high-needs schools to further their
understanding. They engage in critical
dialogue and evaluate the effects of
educational reform and policy changes. This
course satisfies 35 of the required
school-based fieldwork hours for students
seeking teacher certification.
This class will be working with the Young
Scholars Liberty Partnership Program (a
college prep program for “at-risk” youth) to
interview staff, teachers, students, and
parents to assess various components of the
program.
Links:
Campus Compact
Learn and Serve America
Michigan Journal of Community Service
Learning
Article Catalog (.pdf)
Workshop on Fundamentals of Service-Learning
Consultation
We are available to consult with individual
faculty interested in transforming an
existing course to service-learning or to
strengthen an existing service-learning
course. We also work with academic
departments as they consider a stronger
presence for service-learning in their
curriculum, including strategic planning,
workshops, and identification of appropriate
community partners.
Grants
Funding may be available through either the
COVE or Upstate Institute to support or
enhance service-learning opportunities.
Print Resources
·
videos
·
grant applications
·
project descriptions
·
course lists
Resources for the Community
|
