Introduction to Service-Learning for Students

What is Service-Learning? Reciprocal Partnership Need/Interest defined by community Meaningful integration with course content Critical Reflection to “harvest” learning from community Credit/Assessment based on demonstration of learning

Service-Learning is… “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, 1996). Hand out S-L 101 and what does it look like

Criteria for UVM SL Courses There are 5 criteria for designation It is a credit-bearing undergraduate and/or graduate level course. It integrates service and academic course content so that each significantly informs and enhances the other. There are planned benefits for the community partner and the students; and the service addresses a need and follows processes that are mutually agreed upon by the partner agencies and the instructor. Student course assessment and credit are based upon the demonstration of student learning including critical reflection regarding the integration of the service and the academic course content. The course actively guides and supports students in critical reflection regarding the integration of the service and the academic course content.

Office of Community-University Partnerships and Service-Learning MISSION To connect the university and community as partners in addressing real-world challenges through engaged scholarship and transformative learning experiences.

What We Do Support faculty in developing service-learning and community-engaged courses at UVM Connect community partners to faculty and students at UVM Provide service and community-based learning opportunities for students

Benefits of Service-Learning For the Faculty: Creates a collaborative, experiential classroom experience for students, making faculty impact more lasting. Offers opportunities to test theories on real problems. Provides access to interview, survey, and other data. Creates a collaborative partnership that can help in securing funding.   For the Institution: Positively impacts student retention. Enhances teaching, research, and program development. Increases institution’s awareness of societal issues as they relate to academic areas of interest. Engages faculty and students in local and state community issues. Provides opportunities to extend College’s knowledge and resources.

Benefits of Service-Learning For the Student: Applies concepts from the classroom to real-world experiences, enhancing understanding and retention. Increases meaningful connections to faculty, other students, and community. Provides platforms to analyze and discuss civic, personal, and professional development. Increases sense of self-efficacy, analytical skills, and social development. A “high-impact practice” increasing retention & academic challenge For the Community: Enhances positive relationships with the college. Provides awareness-building of community issues, agencies, and constituents. Contributes to positive exposure in the community. Creates ways to expand current services by providing both technical and research support, actual onsite work. May help to secure outside funding.  

Student Development in S-L Service-learning is a “high-impact practice” and has demonstrated effects on students in six domains: Academic and Cognitive Development Civic Development Career Development Ethical and Moral Development Personal Development Social Development

Partnerships “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, 1996). Partnership hand outs… Kailee Reciprocal partnership is a key element of SL course. SL courses work with such orgs. as the UVM office for Sustainability and UVM’s Growing VT store, to legislators’ offices, school districts, VT Family Forrests, CEDO, and more– doing projects such as creating business plans, working directly with elementary school students, or producing marketing materials. CUPS has a database of partners from the past, as well as connections to partners looking for UVM support and a match, so you can begin with a partner in mind or have a project idea and create a mutually beneficial one, lots of support to do so. Across all of these diverse partnerships– good ones have these qualities: HandoutAs you choose a partner or start thinking of a partnership, keep these in mind and find tools to make those possible. Challenges? Resources? (initial connection, communication, project management, assessment/delivery—CUPS consultations)

Key Element of Service-Learning Reciprocity… Equal benefit and investment; Every individual, organization, and entity involved in service-learning functions as both a teacher and a learner. (From: http://www.compact.org/aboutcc/glossary/glossary.html#reciprocity)

Principles of Good Practice Agreed upon goals and values Mutual trust, authenticity, and commitment Identifying and addressing strengths and weaknesses Balance of power and sharing of resources Open Communication Collaborative process Feedback for improvement Sharing of responsibility Committing time and resources From Cress et al. (2005), Learning Through Serving

Partnership Facilitation Managing Expectations Help students limit scope and timeline Appropriate project matches to student skills Communication is Key Syllabus to Partners Maintain regular and planned communication Memorandum of Understanding/Agreement CUPS Community Partner Survey

Reflection “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, 1996). Reflection hand outs… Kim

The Learning Cycle According to David Kolb’s Learning Cycle (the process that participants go through in experiential learning), reflection is one of the four stages in the process that students will be exploring. Concrete experience Observation and Active experimentation Reflection Forming abstract concepts Concrete experience

PARE Model Preparation Action Evaluation Reflection What is the community need? What do you hope to learn? Time you spend doing the project Reciprocal Addresses a community need Evaluation Reflection Adjust as necessary Continuous Captures your learning

Characteristics of quality reflection Clearly communicate ideas and analysis. Critically examine experiences with Relevance, Accuracy, Clarity Depth, Breadth, Logic, and Significance Explore connections between academic and service components. Seek alternative explanations for incidents 1. Critical analysis is key here. Students should be struggling with these concepts and ideas, challenging themselves to think about things they may have ignored before, or

Reflection… Reflection is not just about telling what you did, it’s about making connections between the service and the learning, thinking critically about your experience, and going beyond the surface to uncover the less obvious aspects of the experience.

Continuous Reflection Model During Service Reflection Pre-Service Reflection Post-Service Reflection Continuous Reflection Model

For more information: www.uvm.edu/partnerships 656-0095, partnerships@uvm.edu SIGN UP FOR OUR MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTER Training & development Institute for Community-Engaged Learning Individual Consultation Syllabus Feedback Reflection Assignment Construction Partner Facilitation Implementation Support Service-Learning Implementation Grants Service-Learning Teaching Assistant Program Resources Service-Learning, Engaged Pedagogy and CBR Library Faculty, Student & Community Partner Guides Examples in the Disciplines Sample Syllabi, Reflection and Partnership Materials

Questions or Comments? University of Vermont Community-University Partnerships and Service-Learning uvm.edu/partnerships – partners@uvm.edu – 802-656-0095