Transcript Slide 1

Service-Learning:
Defining, Describing and Doing
St. Ambrose University
April 6, 2015
Susan and Rob Shumer
Introductions

Rob and Susan Shumer
Participants:
Name, Department/Title, Experience with S/L and one
question you would like addressed



Goal for the Day
Review the workshop agenda
Our Goal for the Workshop



to begin a dialogue providing background
and understanding of service-learning
(describing)
discussing what service-learning is
(defining)
and how it is designed, developed and
implemented in a university setting (doing)
Proposed Agenda

9:00 - 9:30
Brief History and Defining Service-Learning

9:30 - 10:45
Nuts and Bolts of Service-Learning Course Development

10:45-11:00
Break

11:00 - Noon
The how’s and whys of service-learning course development
Small groups exercise

Noon - 12:15
Reflection on morning activities; Q and A

12:15 - 1:00
Lunch

1:00 - 1:30
Assessment and Accountability

1:30 - 2:00
Assessing Today’s Workshop
2:00 - 2:30
Reflections on Activities/Service-Learning programs;

Q and A
Service-Learning:
A Brief History

1903 Cooperative Education began at the
University of Cincinnati

William James (1910): The Moral Equivalent
of War – national service efforts to promote
peace…and education for all citizens
History - 1930’s

George Counts: Dare the Schools Build a
New Social Order -

The Progressive Education movement: John
Dewey and others
History - 1960’s
•
•
•
President Kennedy’s call to service
Martin Luther King “…everyone can serve”
Southern Region Educational Board
popularized service-learning internship model
– integration of the accomplishment of a
public task with conscious educational
growth.
History– 1970’s


University Year for Action - 1972
Robert Sigmon defined service-learning as an
experiential education approach that is premised on
"reciprocal learning" (Sigmon, 1979). He suggested
because learning flows from service activities, both
those who provide service and those who receive it
"learn" from the experience. In Sigmon's view,
service-learning occurs only when both the providers
and recipients of service benefit from the activities.
History – 1970’s and 1980’s








National Society for Internships and Experiential
Education-NSEE (1971–name change in 80’s)
Association for Experiential Education (AEE)
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)
Campus Compact (1985)
Campus Outreach Opportunity League (COOL)
Youth Service America (YSA)
Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary
Education
Points of Light Foundation (Bush, 1989)
History – 1990’s


National and Community Service Act (1990)
National and Community Service Trust Act
(1993):
–
–
created Corporation for National and Community
Service
developed National Service (AmeriCorps) and Learn
and Serve America (service-learning efforts in
schools and institutions of higher education)
1990’s History Continued…




Wingspread Conference on Creating a
Research Agenda for Service-Learning
(1991) (involvement of AERA)
Created state level system in every state for
Funding for Learn and Serve America
National Service-Learning Clearinghouse
Creation of service-learning listservs (K-12,
higher education, community-based
programs)
History – 2000’s

International Association for Research on
Service-Learning and Community
Engagement Conference (IARSLCE)

American Democracy Project (ADP)
End of Learn and Serve America at CNCS
(2011)

Current Efforts







Campus Community Partnerships for Health (CCPH)
National and State Campus Compact
International Association for Research on ServiceLearning and Civic Engagement (IARSLCE)
National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE)
AAC&U and AASCU
American Democracy Project (ADP)
Education Commission of the States (ECS)
The History goes on…Resources




A Movement’s Pioneers Reflect on its
Origins, Practice and Future, (Stanton, Giles,
& Cruz, 1999)
Where is the Learning in Service-Learning,
(Giles an Eyler,1999)
Combining Service and Learning (NSIEE,
1991)
Annual International Association for
Research on Service-Learning and
Community Engagement Conference
Why Service-Learning?





Because service-learning is an educational effort to
connect theory and practice; combine experiential
education with academic learning
Because principles of service-learning are consistent
with mission, vision and values of St. Ambrose
University
Focus on meeting community needs
Focus on empowering students and communities to
learn to solve social/community problems
Goal of service-learning is to promote social justice
Principles of Good Practice






Academic Credit is for Learning, Not for Service
Do Not Compromise Academic Rigor
Establish Learning Objectives
Establish Criteria for the Selection of Service
Placements
Provide Educationally Sound Learning Strategies to
Harvest Community Learning and Realize Course
Learning Objectives
Prepare Students for Learning from the Community
Principles Continued…




Minimize the Distinction Between the Students’
Community Learning Role and Classroom Learning
Role
Rethink the Faculty Instructional Role
Be Prepared for Variations in, and some Loss of
Control with, Student Learning Objectives
Maximize the Community Responsibility Orientation
of the Course
Excerpted from Howard, Jeffry, ed., Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning’s
Service-learning Course Design Workbook, University of Michigan: OCS Press, Summer 2001
Service-Learning or
Community Service
Community Service…The primary emphasis is on the
service being provided and the primary intended
beneficiary is clearly the service recipient. It is a cocurricular activity and completely voluntary.
Service –Learning…is distinct because it is curriculum
based, meaning the community or public service
activity is intricately connected to and enhanced by an
academic course for credit.
Explaining the Difference to
Community Members

Cleaning up a river bank is an example of “service”

Taking a science class and looking at water samples under a
microscope is an example of “learning”

Science class students taking samples from local water
sources, then analyzing the samples, documenting the results,
presenting the scientific information to a pollution control
agency, and reflecting on the impact these results may have on
future pollution control issues is an example of “servicelearning”
Circle of Engaged Learning
Metropolitan State University
Community
Connection
Civic Engagement
Service to
Community
Mission &
Vision
UniversityCommunity
Service
CommunityUniversity
Partnership
Community
Immersion
Community-Based
Learning
Visualization of Metropolitan State University’s
Engaged Campus Initiative
St. Ambrose University’s
Mission and Vision
Mission
…independent, diocesan and Catholic – enables its
students to develop intellectually, spiritually, ethically,
socially, artistically and physically to enrich their
(students) own lives and the lives of other
Vision
…will be recognized as a leading Midwestern university
rooted in its diocesan heritage and Catholic Intellectual
Tradition. Ambrosians are committed to academic
excellence, the liberal arts, social justice and service
Catholicity

Catholic Intellectual Tradition: welcomes
inquiry and deeply encourages critical
thinking

Knowledge and action to serve

Catholicity is service-learning
St. Ambrose University's
working S/L definition
Service-Learning is a form of experiential
education in which students engage in activities
that address human and community needs
together with structured opportunities
intentionally designed to promote student
learning and development.
Jacoby, 1997,2003
Nuts and Bolts:
Some Beginning Ideas for
Course Development

Service-learning: courses/programs designed to include
academic learning as part of an effort by educational institutions
to provide meaningful service to specified communities
Can be developed from two origins:
1) designed to integrate learning from a particular course with
learning/activities in a community setting;
2) designed to identify specific needs of a community and to
construct courses/learning activities that meet the specific needs
identified

Essential Components of a
Service-Learning Course





Engagement
Critical Reflection
Reciprocity
Assessment
Public Dissemination
Course and Syllabus Development




Identify Course Objectives (with a clear connection
between the academic content and the service
component)
Identify Course Format (is the service optional or
mandatory?, number of hours, nature of the work, etc.)
Clear Requirements for Reflection (how often, what
format, oral or written?, feed-back process)
Concise Description of the Evaluation Structure (what will
be evaluated an how will service-related evaluation be
weighted with the rest of the course?
Best Resource for Syllabi
Examples
www.compact.org/category/syllabi
Course Examples
Sociology Immersion Quarter: University of California, Los Angeles
 Combines three courses (undergraduate level): Sociology of Juvenile
Justice, Introduction to Social Science Research, Intensive Writing
 Students spend 15 hours/week in a community agency studying their
work with youth agencies—learn to do ethnographic study, learn about
juvenile justice system, learn to write research reports
 Provide service to community agencies, learn to work with youth in
those agencies, and also study role of youth serving agencies in
providing assistance to youth and their families
 Students learn academic theories and principles of youth justice
systems; also learn how to serve youth involved in those systems.
 Service is provided to the youth and to the agency; students learn
theories of youth social programs
15 MINUTE BREAK
Small Group Exercise
For each community partner examples discuss and
determine:




What courses might offer a service- learning opportunity
for students?
What activities would be designed for the student learning
outcomes?
How do the activities meet the needs outlined by the
community?
Describe how reflection integrates the activity into the
course.
Reflection on the Morning…

Did we cover questions from introductions?

Questions to address in the afternoon…

Q and A
LUNCH BREAK
Assessment and Accountability
From Punishment to Assessment
Ensuring there is evidence service and learning
are occurring
From “Punishment” to
Assessment

Evaluation theories and practices have developed over the past
40 years

From focus on quantitative/experimental design, to utilization
focused evaluation, to qualitative approaches involving
empowerment/participatory evaluation, to mixed methods
designs, to critical theory, to developmental evaluation, to focus
groups ……

Lots of theories and approaches
Some Basic Issues

Definitions: what are we evaluating?
Process: how are we evaluating “it”?
Who is involved in the evaluation process
(evaluation expert, participants, outside groups,
????)?
How are data collected? When? Why?
How are data analyzed? Reported?
How is the evaluation used?

What changes occur as result of the evaluation?





Puns As Preview



Sometimes it is fun to use puns to help us
think critically about evaluation.
So….here goes. Evaluate the following
puns, determining which one of the four is
best.
Think of this process as……you guessed
it…..
PUNISHMENT
Here Come the Puns…




Numero Uno: A good pun is its own reword.
Number 2: When the smog lifts in Los
Angeles UCLA
Number 3: War does not determine who is
right, it determines who is left.
Number 4: Man who leaps off cliff, jumps to
conclusion
Discussion


What is a pun?? “the humorous use of a
word or phrase so as to emphasize or
suggest its different meanings or
applications, or the use of words that are
alike or nearly alike in sound but different in
meaning; a play on words”
Using this definition, how did you evaluate
the four puns. Which one was best….based
on what criteria?
Developing Criteria for Evaluation
If we had to pick 3 areas to evaluate a pun,
what would they be?? Discuss……
 Criteria are:
 1
 2
 3
Using these criteria, let’s evaluate 3 more puns
to see which one is the best….

The Test Puns



Number 1: When fish are in schools, they
sometimes take debate.
Number 2: Police were called to a day care
Center where a three year old was resisting
a rest.
Number 3: What do you call a short fortune
teller who escaped from prison??? (think
about it…I’ll provide the answer)
Discussion About Evaluation

So, which one was the best? 1, 2, or 3.
Explain why

What does this have to do with evaluation?
Issues for Evaluation





What is the goal and purpose of doing the
evaluation?
How do we develop common understanding of what
we are evaluating?
What measures do we use to create an evaluation
plan?
Who is/should be involved in developing the
evaluation?
What data are necessary, who should collect it, and
how should it be collected?
Issues for Evaluating ServiceLearning Programs





What are the goals and purposes of the servicelearning?
What academic outcomes do you expect?
What community impact outcomes do you expect?
What does the program look like? What will students
do? What do you expect community members to do?
What evidence will you need to show that students
are learning academic content?
More Issues…





What evidence do you need to show service is being
delivered?
What evidence do you need to show there is impact
on the community?
What evidence do you need to show the community
members are learning to take power and control over
their programs?
What evidence do you have that the evaluation is
being used?
What evidence do you have to show that high quality
service-learning has occurred/is occurring?
Evaluating Service-Learning at
St. Ambrose

Let’s discuss what you’ve learned about the
evaluation process (or already know) in
terms of a course or two at St. Ambrose.

What is the course, what are the academic
goals and anticipated community
outcomes….and how did the evaluations
go??
Challenges of Evaluation





What are the primary challenges in conducting
evaluations on service-learning programs?
Time to develop the plan?
Agreeing on goals and objectives….and methods of
evaluation and sources of data?
Coordination with all those involved?
Monitoring the process and ensuring there are
meaningful results….
Reflection and Assessing
Today’s Workshop



What has been the value of today’s
workshop?
What are the key learning points that will
guide your creation of a service-learning
course?
What should we do next to promote servicelearning at St. Ambrose?
THANK YOU
Are there any questions or comments?
Contact Information



Rob Shumer, Ph.D.
[email protected]
651-336-7777
Susan Spring Shumer
[email protected]
651-983-3243