Multifaceted Aspects of Assessment in Service Learning: Lessons Learned

Abstract

Article Overview. Service learning is a teaching methodology that combines community service with explicit academic learning objectives, preparation, and reflection. It is a formal program that fosters student service in the local community and coincides with the theme of a course or specific topic of discussion. Much of the research in service learning, however, has been conducted on undergraduate students. Despite educators' eagerness to incorporate service learning throughout university health professions education programs, there is a paucity of graduate-level outcomes research in evaluating the effectiveness of personal and professional development. This article synthesizes the available instruments to measure outcomes of service learning. It presents strategies for the use of qualitative and quantitative analyses in measuring the effectiveness of service learning within a physical therapist education program curriculum. Key Words: Service learning, Physical therapy, Graduate, Outcome assessment. INTRODUCTION A dynamic physical therapist (PT) interacts daily with people of all backgrounds, age groups, and heritages. To prepare students for this reality, educators are often challenged to design for them engaging cross-cultural experiences. Service learning is a pedagogy that combines community service with explicit academic objectives, preparation, and reflection,1 and it is an effective tool for linking academic learning with practical experience.2 Before adopting service learning as a mandatory experience within the curriculum, it is important to assess its effectiveness in promoting the skills necessary for successful physical therapist-patient/client interaction. This article will present our initial attempt to assess the benefits of service learning through quantitative and qualitative data collection. It will conclude with a discussion of strategies for assessment that include practical tools for implementation in planning for successful service-learning outcomes. Introduction to Lessons Learned in Assessment Our research exploring the use of various assessment strategies was conducted in 1999, when few instruments were available to measure service learning for graduate students. Therefore, both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used to analyze the integration of service learning into the curriculum of a graduate physical therapist education program. We hypothesized that graduate PT students who were educated using a service-learning model would demonstrate increased levels of civic responsibility when compared with graduate-level PT students who had not participated in a service-learning course. Ninety-two Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) students participated in the study at the initiation of the fall semester (1999) and at the completion of the spring semester (2000). All students were given a survey at the beginning of the fall semester and again in the spring, at the end of the academic year. They were also instructed to keep journals of their experiences on a regular basis and to write in them immediately after their service. Upon completion of the 30 hours, students were asked to write summaries of their entire service-learning experience. Faculty members teaching in the program were responsible for discussing service learning as it related to physical therapy interventions and physical therapist practice, thereby guiding students toward making connections between learning in the community and in the classroom or clinic. The Data Collection Instruments The guiding questions for this study included: 1. How does your experience affect the way you view service learning in the community? 2. How does service learning shape your role as a PT? 3 . Do you have a greater understanding of yourself as a result of service learning? The data were both quantitative and qualitative in nature. Qualitative data included journal entries and summary statements. …