What
is Service Learning or Community Engagement?
Community engagement pedagogies, often called
“service learning,” are ones that combine learning goals and community service
in ways that can enhance both student growth and the common good. In the
words of the National Service Learning Clearinghouse, it 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.” Or, to quote Vanderbilt University’s Janet
S. Eyler (winner of the 2003 Thomas Ehrlich Faculty Award for Service Learning)
and Dwight E. Giles, Jr., it is
"a form of experiential education where
learning occurs through a cycle of action and reflection as students. . . seek
to achieve real objectives for the community and deeper understanding and
skills for themselves. In the process, students link personal and social
development with academic and cognitive development. . . experience enhances
understanding; understanding leads to more effective action."
Typically,
community engagement is incorporated into a course or series of courses by way
of a project that has both learning and community action goals. This
project is designed via collaboration between faculty and community partners,
such as non-governmental organizations or government agencies. The
project asks students to apply course content to community-based
activities. This gives students experiential opportunities to learn in
real world contexts and develop skills of community engagement, while affording
community partners opportunities to address significant needs. Vanderbilt
University’s Sharon Shields has argued that service learning is “one of the
most significant teaching methodologies gaining momentum on many campuses.” [1]
Indeed, when done well, teaching through community engagement benefits
students, faculty, communities, and institutions of higher education. Below are some of the benefits that education researchers
and practitioners have associated with community engaged teaching. [2]
Service
learning helps students acquire useful skills, and it can lead to professional
opportunities. However, its purpose is
to illuminate classroom subjects through real-world activities which positively
impact individuals and organizations in the wider community. The time commitment for service learning is
usually less (15-30 hours per semester).
Student Benefits of
Community Engagement
Learning Outcomes
- Positive
impact on students' academic learning
- Improves
students' ability to apply what they have learned in “the real world”
- Positive
impact on academic outcomes such as demonstrated complexity of
understanding, problem analysis, problem-solving, critical thinking, and
cognitive development
- Improved
ability to understand complexity and ambiguity
Personal Outcomes
- Greater
sense of personal efficacy, personal identity, spiritual growth, and moral
development
- Greater
interpersonal development, particularly the ability to work well with
others, and build leadership and communication skills
Social Outcomes
- Reduced
stereotypes and greater inter-cultural understanding
- Improved
social responsibility and citizenship skills
- Greater
involvement in community service after graduation
Career Development
- Connections
with professionals and community members for learning and career
opportunities
- Greater
academic learning, leadership skills, and personal efficacy can lead to
greater opportunity
Relationship with the Institution
- Stronger
relationships with faculty
- Greater
satisfaction with college
- Improved
graduation rates
Faculty Benefits of
Community Engagement
- Satisfaction
with the quality of student learning
- New
avenues for research and publication via new relationships between faculty
and community
- Providing
networking opportunities with engaged faculty in other disciplines or
institutions
- A
stronger commitment to one’s research
College and University
Benefits of Community Engagement
- Improved
institutional commitment to the curriculum
- Improved
student retention
- Enhanced
community relations
Community Benefits of Community Engagement
- Satisfaction
with student participation
- Valuable
human resources needed to achieve community goals
- New
energy, enthusiasm and perspectives applied to community work
- Enhanced
community-university relations
Models
of Community Engagement Teaching
What
does community engaged teaching look like in practice? There are many
variations and each have their usefulness for different applications.
According to Kerissa Heffernan, there are six general models. [3]
Discipline-Based
Model
In this model, students are expected to have a presence
in the community throughout the semester and reflect on their experiences
regularly. In these reflections, they use course content as a basis for
their analysis and understanding of the key theoretical, methodological and
applied issues at hand.
Problem-Based
Model
Students relate to the community much as “consultants”
working for a “client.” Students work with community members to understand a
particular community problem or need. This model presumes that the
students have or will develop capacities with which to help communities solve a
problem. For example: architecture students might design a park; business
students might develop a web site; botany students might identify non-native
plants and suggest eradication methods.
Capstone
Course Model
These courses are generally designed for majors and
minors in a given discipline and are offered almost exclusively to students in
their final year. Capstone courses ask students to draw upon the knowledge they
have obtained throughout their course work and combine it with relevant service
work in the community. The goal of capstone courses is usually either exploring
a new topic or synthesizing students’ understanding of their discipline.
Service
Internship Model
This approach asks students to work as many as 10 to 20
hours a week in a community setting. As in traditional internships, students
are charged with producing a body of work that is of value to the community or
site. However, unlike traditional internships, service internships have
on-going faculty-guided reflection to challenge the students to analyze their
new experiences using discipline-based theories. Service internships
focus on reciprocity: the idea that the community and the student benefit
equally from the experience.
Action
Research Model
Community-based action research is similar to an
independent study option for the student who is highly experienced in community
work. This approach can be effective with small classes or groups of
students. In this model, students work closely with faculty members to
learn research methodology while serving as advocates for communities.
This model assumes that students are or can be trained to be competent in time
management and can negotiate diverse communities.
Directed
Study Additional/Extra Credit Model
Students can register for up to three additional/extra
credits in a course by making special arrangements with the instructor to
complete an added community-based project. The course instructor serves
as the advisor for the directed study option. Such arrangements require
departmental approval and formal student registration.
Ways to Integrate Community
Engagement
into an Existing Course
There
are many ways to integrate community engagement into an existing course,
depending on the learning goals, the size of the class, the academic
preparation of the students, and the community partnership or project
type. Below are some general tips to consider as you begin: [4]
- One-time
group service projects: Some course objectives can be met when the entire
class is involved in a one-time service project. Arrangements for service
projects can be made prior to the semester and included in the syllabus.
This model affords the opportunity for faculty and peer interaction
because a common service experience is shared. One-time projects have
different learning outcomes than ongoing service activities.
- Option
within a course: Many faculty begin community engagement with a pilot
project. In this design, students have the option to become involved in
the community-based project. A portion of the normal coursework is
substituted by the community-based component. For example, a
traditional research paper or group project can be replaced with an
experiential research paper or personal journal that documents learning
from the service experience.
- Required
within a course: In this case, all students are involved in service as an
integrated aspect of the course. This expectation must be clearly stated
at the first class meeting, on the syllabus, with a clear rationale
provided to students as to why the service component is required.
Exceptions can be arranged on an individual basis or students can transfer
to another class. If all students are involved in service, it is easier to
design coursework (i.e., class discussions, writing assignments, exam
questions) that integrates the service experience with course objectives.
Class sessions can involve agency personnel and site visits. Faculty
report that it is easier to build community partnerships if a consistent
number of students are involved each semester.
- Action
research projects: This type of class involves students in research within
the community. The results of the research are communicated to the agency
so that it can be used to address community needs. Action research and
participatory action research take a significant amount of time to build
relationships of trust in the community and identify common research
agendas; however, community research projects can support the ongoing
research of faculty. Extending this type of research beyond the confines
of a semester may be best for all involved.
- Disciplinary
capstone projects: Community engagement is an excellent way to build upon
students' cumulative knowledge in a specific discipline and to demonstrate
the integration of that knowledge with real life issues. Upper class
students can explore ways their disciplinary expertise and competencies
translate into addressing community needs. Other community-based classes
within the department can prepare the student for this more extensive
community-based class.
- Multiple
course projects: Community engagement projects with one or more
partners may span different courses in the same semester or multiple
courses over a year or longer. These projects must be broad enough
to meet the learning goals of multiple courses over time, and because of
this they may have a cumulative impact on both student learning and
community development that is robust. Such projects may be
particularly suited to course clusters or learning communities within or
across disciplines, or course sequences, say, within a major, that build
student capacity towards advanced learning and community action goals.
