Essay On Service Learning Experience

I signed up to volunteer at a local nursing home. Because my father works there, I have been there many times before. However, volunteering there was very new to me.

Interactive programs where students can complete a scavenger hunt throughout the zoo learning the facts about the different animals, a live lesson with a few educational animals like birds, snakes, and owls. Role play theater where students will be asked to act like concern animals.

It is also a “boundary spanning” activity in that it requires active involvement from people both within and outside of the classroom context, often resulting in participant contributors who represent a variety of generations, ethnicities, social groups, and experience levels (Billig and Furco, 2002, p.vii). Service-learning is designed to reduce the boundaries between an institutional campus environment and the community around it. It is designed to connect learning to real experience through service and reflection (Ball and Schilling, 2006; Becker, 2000). As a baseline to facilitate this development, service-learning is distinct from other types of community service and civic engagement experiences in that the service-learning experience must not only have a service and reflective component but also be clearly tied to the curriculum through learning objectives and theoretical underpinnings (Bloomquist, 2015; Pritchard, 2001). As Barbara Holland, former Director of the U.S. National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, shared, “Service-learning is all in the hyphen. It is the enrichment of specific learning goals through structured community service opportunities that respond to community-identified needs and opportunities.” (Kenworthy-U’Ren, Taylor, and Petri, 2006: 121).

The service day on April 5th, really gave me a precious opportunity to have access to the life and health of immigrant persons from South America and their priorities in life as well as their consideration about health. This is my first time to help so many immigrant persons from South America check their blood pressure, height and body weight, and give them information about how to have access to free clinical and blood pressure control as well as weight management. I really thank Professor Raja, because it was she who gave us this precious experience to do service for and know this special population in USA.

Service Learning is an educational strategy set in place to enlighten students with instruction and experience, in addition to improve learning , teach responsibility, and support the community. Service learning is vital to the development of the student, given that it intertwines academic and personal development together. It is aimed to enhance a student’s learning in all aspects of life.

For this course we received a hands-on opportunity to view science in an outdoors setting at Nixon County Park. I attended a training session to learn more about the practices and procedures of nature education and assisted two grade levels of children that visited the park. I helped first graders on a nature walk and fourth graders on an indoor lesson about animals. Both were unique experiences that helped me learn to become a better teacher of science.

The benefit of service learning for the student and community is again a better inform civic minded individual who may use his experience from service learning as a launching pad for career opportunities to better serve within that community. In an article published in the College Student Journal its author noted that with service learning “students gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility" (Strange,

I highly recommend this course continue to require service learning as a component of Academic Foundations. It is never a bad idea to get the students involved on campus and get them familiar with the facilities we have located on campus. Getting involved with the community and individuals active is a positive aspect of this

Botanicals are an appealing way to introduce science to children while pleasing and engaging the senses. At all ages, it is important to orientate children towards native plants and wildlife. Learning about the importance, function, and preservation of native species not only teaches science concepts, but also encourages environmental stewardship. The Botanical Gardens walking and hiking trails are an opportunity to exercise while studying diverse flora and fauna. In addition to nature education opprotunities, Chicago Botanical Gardens has model train exhibit.

I agree that service learning breaks down segregation on campus because students get to meet and work with other people from all over the world. This can help them learn about other people's ethnicity, background, and race. Service learning is great because people will be open minded about other culture once they learn about each other by working together.

Assistant Professor of Education, Dan Butin, asserts in his essay " Service- Learning is Dangerous" that service-learning is dangerous because it forces the focus of education outside of the classroom and challenges pre-existing notions of what higher education entails and how it is structured. He suggests that it should be more than just a course, but should be the course itself. He also contends that service-learning is able to provoke the student to question who they are and what they believe. It is able to combine conventional education with life experience for a more rounded approach to educating.

I did not know what service-learning was until I read the articles assigned for class. The articles along with going to the Harpers Ferry Job Corps orientation really showed me what it was all about. The reading and the class presentation have challenged my first thoughts by giving me a better understanding of what service learning is. Service-learning goes a couple of miles further than community service. Service-learning allows students to help the community, as well as learn about something. For example, my Education class is going to be tutoring students at Job Corps. Our class is providing the Harpers Ferry community a free service of tutoring to those who need it while hopefully my peers and I will gain a solid understanding of what it would be like to teach one-on-one. Service-learning has three main components: community service, instruction, and reflection. Those components work well together and make service-learning seem like the perfect answer to helping education grow into a more progressive way. However, students need to have a high responsibility, they have to take the initiative, as well as make choices. If students do not do that, the success of service-learning will be lacking.

I believe the general purpose of service learning is to give back, to provide to others while being the change you want to see in others. It is also a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience. Sometimes service learning isn’t always about doing things you like or that interests you but it’s about giving back to the community in a meaningful way. Those who participate in service learning are definitely over achievers because service learning has to come from the heart.

I personally believe that service learning is a great thing for many reasons. One of the biggest reasons is that service learning can give you great exposure to having face to face interaction which I think millennials try to avoid. Another reason that service learning is a great thing is that it can teach some people about how to be more compassionate as well as helping students understand their civic responsibilities as young adults. As stated by Flecky & Gitlow (2011), “a unique aspect of service-learning is that it incorporates structured opportunities for students, faculty and community partners to reflect on their interactions and activities in light of both educational and community objectives.” (p. 1-2). My interpretation of this quote is that the authors view service learning in a positive light. My understanding is that the authors believe by students reflecting on their interactions with the community, it can help further their

One concern of universities that are considering adding service learning is that not enough students will be interested in participating. There are several ways to get students interested in service learning. One way to get their attention is to give students who participate extra benefits. Some examples of extra benefits would be extra credit in their courses or even offering free credit hours. Another thing that would appeal to students is that the class would meet less often because one on the classes meeting times would be their service learning project. Another benefit of service learning is