Service-learning Experience Research Articles

Abstract PO-056: The ReTOOL training program for underrepresented minority students: Best practices for virtual training in midst of COVID-19

Abstract Background: The Research Training Opportunities for Outstanding Leaders (ReTOOL) Program is an NCI/NIH-funded program (R25CA214225) that focuses on increasing the representation of underserved minority (URM) scientists in biomedical research careers to diversify the cancer research workforce. In addition to didactic curriculum and mentoring, each trainee works with a research mentor who provides hands-on research training experiences during the summer. Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ReTOOL Program was modified to be virtual for the 2020 program. Methods: In response to the COVID19 global pandemic, the ReTOOL program leadership and faculty mentors modified the program element: didactic classes, research training, mentorship, seminars and support networks. The introductory week's independent reading sessions and weekly research seminars remained unchanged, as they were already virtual. Results: 20 students participated in the ReTOOL 2020 program, which started on May 4 and ended on August 7. An online program agreement was created to set expectations about participation, weekly reporting form to ensure trainees met program requirements, and evaluations for continuous monitoring. Specific adjustments that were made included: (1) the one-week preparatory didactic classes were conducted online using Zoom; (2) all research training took place virtually. All wet-lab research-training activities were cancelled, with the 2020 faculty mentors primarily dry-lab scientists and scientists with expertise in secondary data analyses. All trainees worked remotely with dedicated computer/laptop with camera for Zoom video communications, internet and dedicated space for learning. There was access to online library resources through University of Florida (UF); (3) Mentorship was provided with increased frequency of meetings with faculty mentors, program staff and peers; (4) Weekly social event to foster relationships and peer networks. Trainees developed fun, lighthearted activities; and (5) Research showcase with oral presentations through Zoom and innovative use of Twitter for poster sessions. A critical missed opportunity for the trainees was visiting different graduate or professional programs at UF. To fill this gap, we provided funding for each trainee to visit UF later. An advantage of moving the program to a virtual platform was co-mentoring by international mentors in Africa, through the Prostate Cancer Transatlantic Consortium (CaPTC). Additionally, the Service Learning experiences took place virtually. Conclusion: The COVID19 pandemic created an unusual circumstance but we were able to overcome the challenges, which included Zoom fatigue, adjustment to different time zones, isolation and information fatigue. While the ReTOOL research-training program was different in 2020, we were still be able to provide a meaningful experience for the trainees. 2020 trainees submitted 7 conference abstracts and 6 publications. This includes a special series focused on the ReTOOL program projects soon to publish in ecancermedicalscience Journal. Citation Format: Parisa Fathi, Folakemi Odedina, John Allen, Debra Lyon, Diana Wilkie, Nissa Askins, Brian Seymour. The ReTOOL training program for underrepresented minority students: Best practices for virtual training in midst of COVID-19 [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: 14th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2021 Oct 6-8. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-056.

Pax Populi: Empowering Afghans through Virtual Tutoring

I began tutoring two Afghan high school students through Pax Populi as a service-learning component of HONR 39900: Virtual Abroad Central Asia. This semester, I will be assisting Purdue students with developing successful tutoring partnerships with Afghan refugees through Pax Populi. The non-profit Pax Populi seeks to empower Afghans through virtual, one-on-one English tutoring. Originally, the program matched young people living in cities across Afghanistan with volunteer tutors, but in light of the Taliban’s rise to power, the organization is now working to provide virtual English lessons to newly arriving Afghan refugees. Many of the refugees speak little English. They will benefit from the help of volunteers to improve their speaking, reading, writing, and listening skills, so they can more easily find work and adjust to life in the United States. Since 2015, Purdue students have been involved in this tutoring project through a partnership between Dr. Liz Brite of the Purdue Honors College and Dr. Robert McNulty, director of Pax Populi. This year, Purdue students are having the opportunity to continue this work through a service-learning experience in HONR 39900: Beyond Afghanistan. This article seeks to inform others about the work Pax Populi has done to serve those in Afghanistan as well as Afghan refugees coming to the United States. This article also emphasizes the benefits volunteers gain from the program, including lasting friendships and a more complex understanding of the world.

Cuando cambiamos el prisma con el que miramos. Un proceso de transformación en accesibilidad desde la asociación para la mediación EQUA

The work that we are exposing includes an inclusive and critical Service-Learning experience, carried out in the Association for social mediation EQUA of Cádiz from a research perspective. This focuses on the presentation of its reflective results from the voices of its protagonists: a group of young people with intellectual disabilities who inquire about accessibility in a context as a formula for their empowerment. The first part of this work includes the framework of meanings from which it is built, which implies its contextualization, as well as the relationship of its basic axes, the Service-Learning, and accessibility. In a second moment, the methodology that has guided the Service-Learning experience is deployed, illustrating the process. The third part shows the research results of the reflective phase of the project, displayed through four focuses: Service-Learning, accessibility, inclusion, and the project itself. The conclusions tell us about the pertinence and relevance of this type of proposal, as well as its effects.

Impact of Clinical and Cultural Activities on Personal Growth During International Service-Learning

Purpose: When healthcare students participate in international service-learning experiences, they are exposed to a culture that is different from their own. This exposure, accomplished through cultural and clinical activities, can help to develop their clinical skills and result in personal growth. However, the individual impact of clinical versus cultural activities on personal growth is poorly understood. This study examines the impact on personal growth of clinical activities and cultural activities during international service-learning in occupational therapy students. Methods: Qualitative interviews using a phenomenological approach were utilized to explore the lived experiences of American occupational therapy students who traveled to Morocco. Responses were coded and analyzed to identify general themes on the impact of different clinical and cultural activities. Qualities of impactful experiences were also identified. Results: Participants identified authentic clinical activities that elicited an emotional response and cultural activities that involved full cultural immersion as being most impactful for their personal growth. Conclusion/Recommendations: To support healthcare students’ personal growth, international service-learning should be designed to include authentic clinical activities that elicit emotion and reflection and opportunities for full immersion into the culture of the country abroad.

Citizen Journalist Research Projects as Structured Service-Learning Experiences in General Education Coursework

Citizen Journalist Research Projects as Structured Service-Learning Experiences in General Education Coursework

Development and Content Validity of the Personal-Professional Development Tool for Occupational Therapy Students During Community-Based Service Learning

As community-based service-learning becomes more widely used in occupational therapy (OT) education, valid and reliable outcome measures are needed to ensure that student learning outcomes are meaningfully and consistently measured. Currently, educators may use instructor-developed questionnaires that have not been validated or employ narrowly focused or overly prescriptive surveys borrowed from other disciplines that may not fully capture the skills that are necessary for competent entry-level practice. Grounded in the Occupational Adaptation Model, the Personal-Professional Development Tool (PPDT) was developed to meet this need. The PPDT was designed as a non-normative, self-referential rating scale that OT students use to set their own learning goals and to self-rate and reflect on their relative mastery of selected skills before and after participation in service-learning. To establish content validity of the PPDT, six experts rated the relevance of each of the 29 test items for measuring the central construct of student personal-professional development. Item-level Content Validity Index (I-CVI) was calculated for each item and adjusted for chance agreements. Twenty-seven items had excellent I-CVI (≥ 0.8) and were retained. Two items had fair I-CVI (0.67) and were revised. With acceptable Scale-level Content Validity Index (S-CVI = 0.91), pilot testing of the revised PPDT in the field is warranted. The PPDT may be a powerful tool to help guide OT students through a community-based service-learning experience by facilitating their setting learning goals, rating their performance, and reflecting on their personal-professional development.

Sharing the Wonder: Service-Learning as an Avenue for Faith Integration in Mathematics

The study described in this article was designed to assess students’ faith integration (FI) learning in a mathematics writing course and its impact on service-learning (SL) as well as to understand how SL can be used to help students think in new ways about the integration of mathematics and faith. A Scholarship of Teaching and Learning methodology (SoTL) was employed, with the intention of using the results to improve course design. The study was conducted in a mathematics writing course for undergraduate math majors. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected and analyzed in a mixed-methods study design. Findings indicated that, following the SL experience, all of the students articulated FI perceptions related to mathematics, and a majority of the new faith-related understanding emerged from their SL experience. However, when prompted, fewer than half of the students expressed a purpose for engaging in service that connected their Christian faith and communicating about math; instead, most students indicated that their faith inspired them to demonstrate good behavior or be a “role model.” Post-SL visit survey results corroborated these findings: Although 80% of the students indicated agreement that the SL experience allowed them to live out Christian values, less than 60% identified themselves as being able to understand the connection between the SL experience and their personal faith. In response to the findings, potential modifications that could be introduced in this mathematics writing course, as well as other similar courses, are presented and discussed.

Faith, Scholarship, and Service-Learning in Music Education: A Creative Approach

This study addressed how faith integration (FI), service-learning (SL), and academic learning can be combined for deeper engagement in an undergraduate music education instrument techniques class. Often instrument techniques classes are seen as consisting of learning the basics of an instrument (facts, knowledge, and basic skills), but not necessarily reaching higher levels of learning that include applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating. Additionally, techniques classes, like other skills-based academic offerings, may be viewed as having no direct connections to FI, given that the focus is on learning the technique of playing an instrument. In this research project, university music education students (preservice music teachers) were challenged to grow in their understanding of how creativity and SL could be combined to increase their own skills for playing an instrument and for teaching that instrument to others. Throughout the project, the university students were also challenged to connect creativity, academic learning, and SL with their core beliefs and understanding of their faith. Assessment data collected at the conclusion of the course indicated that the majority of the students’ academic knowledge, beliefs, disposition, character, and desire for action had been beneficially impacted during the course through the SL experience. The majority of students reported having found joy in composing their own music as well as in facilitating beginning band students in learning composition skills. At the same time, the students self-reported having gained valuable skills and knowledge required for all music teachers.

Experiential Service Learning: Promoting Competency-based Education for Gerontology Students

Service-learning is an effective pedagogical approach meant to deepen learners understanding of course content by linking scholarship and social action when structurally organized based on attainment of professional core competencies. The recent COVID-19 pandemic caused a rethinking of the way service learning practicum is delivered, especially as it relates to training health professionals who engage collaboratively with older persons (individuals aged 65 years and older). This poster examines the challenges faced by gerontology students as they transitioned to fully virtual learning and practicum format, the lessons learned, and how to close the gap between theory and practice for better programmatic processes. The data used to gather students experiences include; student reflective journals, class discussions and survey questions to students (n=44). The analytic framework utilized is the Social Cognitive Theory, (SCT)- which explains how individuals can master concepts through verbal and physical persuasion, including peer modelling. The goal is to promote leaners self- regulatory skills to achieve the course learning objectives, as obtained from the SCT six strategies for setting achievable goals, through: Feedback, self-instruction, self-monitoring, use of support and goal setting. Some of the lessons learned suggest students benefit more from service learning when they receive continuous feedback about how to develop intergenerational relationships with older adult partners assigned to in the community (68%), than from goal setting strategies (24%). The implication for practice is: there is a need to develop structured service-learning guidelines for undergraduate students in gerontology program to be prepared to better serve older adults.

Unspoken barriers: Promoting equity in postsecondary service learning opportunities

While there is an abundance of relevant data on the outcomes of service learning experiences, less is known about how students find service learning experiences. Additionally, little research focuses on capturing the experiences of students’ participation in service learning, especially among underrepresented students. New lines of inquiry could include qualitative studies that seek to better understand the service learning experiences of underrepresented students (i.e., students of color and low socioeconomic status) to explore potential barriers to full participation. In this essay, the author proposes new lines of inquiry when studying issues of access in service learning opportunities, drawing on her experience as a coordinator for a university’s mentoring program. The author argues that studying the experiences of undergraduates engaged in service learning opportunities might highlight barriers to equitable access to and full participation in service learning opportunities and thereby postsecondary outcomes.

Service-Learning Exchange in Developed Cities: Dissonances and Civic Outcomes

Background: The context of learning, which includes the host country, is an important variable of service-learning. Since international service-learning programs often take place in developing countries, studies about their impact and outcomes commonly draw from experiences in developing countries. Purpose: We investigate service-learning experience in developed, urban settings focusing on dissonances and civic outcomes, key areas of service-learning pedagogy. Methodology/Approach: This an instrumental case study based on a small group sample of 12 Asian student participants of a service-learning exchange to partner universities in the USA. Findings/Conclusions: Findings suggest that developed cities can be fertile grounds for impactful dissonances and civic learning. “First-world expectations” increased or intensified dissonances students experienced. Confronting urban poverty and other social issues in cities similar to their own led students to see domestic problems with fresh eyes. Implications: Service-learning exchange in developed cities can facilitate understanding social problems particularly in the way these occur in developed countries and promises transferability of learning. However, students need prompting to connect experiences overseas to home contexts and draw practical consequences. Faculty or staff assistance is necessary to help students constructively cope with powerful dissonances.

A community service learning experience with student teachers of English: enacting social justice in language education in a community centre

ABSTRACT This article reports a service learning experience carried out by volunteer university student teachers of English during 2017–2018 in a non-governmental organisation in Argentina. In collaboration with their university teachers, they taught workshops using intercultural literature in English for underserved children aged 8-12. Drawing on intercultural citizenship theory and intercultural service learning, which both combine language learning with citizenship goals and social justice and human rights foundations, the aim of the service learning experience was to challenge the conditions of possibility for the children involved. Designed as a case study in combination with action research, varied data types were collected (reflection logs, workshop plans, teacher field notes, artefacts created by the children, photographs and video-recordings of workshops). Qualitative data analysis involved three phases (holistic, inductive and deductive). Findings are presented in a vignette with glimpses of an ethnographic description of the context and a narrative account of the first workshop intended to portray the ‘conditions of possibility’ in the setting. The study shows that language learning was transformatory as the children took small actions in their social milieu using varied semiotic resources to convey their messages. Implications for language education with a social justice basis are discussed.

An Analysis of College Students' Service Learning Experience on Free Semester Mentoring Program

목적 본 연구의 목적은 대학 1학년 학생들이 자유학기제 멘토링 캠프 봉사학습(Service Learning) 교과에서 멘토의 경험을 질적으로 분석하고, 대학과 연계한 자유학기제 멘토링 프로그램의 성공적 운영을 위한 함의를 도출하는 데 있다. 방법 연구에 사용된 자료는 멘토링 프로그램 진행 후에 실시한 프로그램 평가에서 대학 1학년 학생들이 작성한 개방형 질문에 대한 응답 자료이다. 프로그램 평가를 위한 질문지에는 ‘멘토링 활동을 하면서 느낀 점’, ‘자유학기제 멘토링 캠프에 멘토로 참여하여 기억에 남는 경험’, ‘자유학기제 멘토링 캠프에 참여하여 배운 것”에 관한 개방형 질문이 제시되었다. 수집된 자료는 주제분석 방법(Thematic analysis)으로 분석하였다. 결과 분석 결과 개인역량-관계-환경 차원에서 멘토는 전인적 성장 경험을 한 것으로 나타났다. 개인 역량 차원에서 멘토는 진로 태도가 성숙해지고, 기획력·문제해결능력·자기효능감과 같은 다양한 핵심 역량이 성장하였다. 관계 차원에서 멘토는 타인에 대한 이해력과 공감 및 소통 능력이 증가하고, 멘티와 멘토가 함께 성장하는 것을 경험하였다. 환경 차원에서 멘토는 멘토링을 준비하는 과정에서 자신의 준비 부족과 멘티의 소극적인 태도로 인한 어려움을 경험하였고, 멘토링 활동에 대한 보다 체계적인 지원이 필요함을 인식하게 되었다. 결론 대학의 봉사학습 교과로 운영된 자유학기제 진로 멘토링 프로그램은 멘토인 대학생에게 다양한 차원의 교육적 효과가 있음을 분석 결과에서 알 수 있었다. 이 프로그램이 지속가능하고, 각 대학에서 효과적으로 운영하기 위해서는 멘토링 프로그램 준비와 실행 과정에서 멘토와 멘티의 상호이해를 위한 시간을 보다 충분히 확보해야 한다. 또한 멘토와 멘티 일대일 멘토링과 팀 차원의 그룹 멘토링 연계를 강화하고, 자유학기제 진로 멘토링 캠프 운영에 참여하는 중학교와 대학이 프로그램의 기획과 준비 단계에서 사전 협의를 충분히 진행하고 프로그램에 반영하는 것이 중요하다.

A Descriptive Analysis of the Experiences of Nursing Students Who Participated in an International Service-Learning Project in Haiti.

Studies have demonstrated multiple benefits of international service-learning experiences in nursing education. These benefits include personal and professional growth, increased cultural sensitivity, and increased self-efficacy. The purpose of this project was to describe the experiences of nursing students engaged in an international service-learning experience in Haiti. A descriptive qualitative outcomes evaluation project was utilized to understand student perceptions of this experience. Nine respondents were interviewed about their experiences that took place as part of a nursing capstone course offered at a private liberal arts university in the Midwest. Interview transcripts were analyzed by the authors for common themes. The six themes identified included: a desire for an international experience to better understand healthcare in a developing country; culture shock; context of poverty; excitement and a sense of "helping" amidst the chaos; feelings of increased confidence, independence, and competence; and personal and professional growth. Responses indicated students felt more confident in caring for individuals from other cultures as well as in basic nursing skills and interprofessional communication after this experience. Participants' narratives also indicated intent to serve vulnerable populations in the future. The nursing students perceived increased sociocultural understanding and self-efficacy following a 10-day international service-learning experience.

Faculty and Community Partners’ Teachable Moments in Service-Learning

The purpose of this study is to understand similarities and differences between faculty and community partners’ teachable moments with college students in service-learning. Twenty-two faculty and 20 community partners reported on four main themes. Similarities included students understanding differences between themselves and the people they worked with and gaining real-world experience. Differences occurred with faculty describing the importance of challenging student beliefs and community partners emphasizing their role in teaching students about their field. This research illuminates how faculty and community partners can utilize teachable moments to maximize student learning during the service-learning experience.

Impact of Mediator Mentors Service-Learning on College Student Social-Emotional Expertise and Cultural Competence

Mentorship in the field of service-learning has many variations. The utilization of peace circles has been on the rise as a way of bringing inclusion and cultural awareness when interacting with diverse perspectives in a group setting. Research on the impact of service-learning experiences on college students reflects that participation in these high-impact practices in higher education lead to positive outcomes through engagement in active learning practices that will impact their future careers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential factors that impact college students’ own growth and development within mentorship service learning experiences in virtual settings with school-aged students. Using Likert-style retrospective survey questions with open-ended responses, this mixed-methods research explored the impact of participating in mentorship service learning on college students’ development of social-emotional and cultural competence. The findings of the study are presented in a descriptive approach which led to conclusions and recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Mediator Mentors program at Fresno State University to positively impact the growth and development of college students in the areas of social-emotional expertise and cultural competence.

An Interprofessional Team-Based Experiential Learning Experience in Public Libraries

The Stony Brook Medicine Healthy Libraries Program (HeLP) is an interprofessional team-based experiential learning opportunity for health professional students. University faculty members in the fields of nursing, public health, social work, and library science collaborated with four suburban public library directors to design, implement, and evaluate a team-based interprofessional service-learning experience, in which supervised students engaged in health monitoring and promotion in the library setting. Participating students were enrolled in either a semester-long population health course ( n = 16), a Master of Social Work fieldwork internship ( n = 2), a Master of Library Science internship ( n = 1), or a Master of Public Health practicum ( n = 2). HeLP faculty educated students on content, library culture, communication, professional roles/responsibilities, and documentation using standardized data collection tools. Concurrently, the interprofessional student teams delivered resources to patrons 1 day a week, with alternating locations, for a minimum of 2 hours per visit over the course of 6 weeks. HeLP provided students with an opportunity to apply core competencies based on the Interprofessional Education Collaborative. The team-based approach fostered interprofessional learning, as students worked together to assist library patrons on health and social needs. Throughout the program’s duration, students documented the type of resources provided, the types of encounters between team members, and the number of referrals. Student learning was assessed after program completion using three open-ended reflection questions.

Identifying and disrupting problematic implicit beliefs about engineering held by students in service-learning

Service-learning (SL), especially in engineering, is a promising way to engage and support local communities, educate students as holistic citizens and professionals, and strengthen the connection between higher education and society. However, within engineering education, SL as a pedagogy has yet to reach its full potential as a transformational pedagogy. To further our understanding of why SL in the context of engineering remains limited, this contribution characterizes: 1) beliefs about engineering implicit in students’ descriptions of their SL experiences, and 2) the ways in which students’ beliefs manifest within the context of SL in engineering. We used an inductive, qualitative approach to analyze focus group and interview data. Our data includes rich, contextual descriptions of SL experiences, which enabled us to generate insight into students’ implicit beliefs about engineering and how they manifest in SL contexts. We found that students predominantly draw on three implicit beliefs about engineering when engaged in SL experiences: 1) Engineering is predominantly technical, 2) Engineering requires deliverables or tangible products, and 3) Engineers are the best problem solvers. These beliefs often manifested problematically, such that they promote university-centered and apolitical practice while reinforcing social hierarchy, leading to community exploitation in support of student development. This study produces empirical evidence that such implicit beliefs are a mechanism that limits the potential of SL by hindering community-centric and justice-oriented practice. However, some students demonstrated their ability to disrupt these beliefs, thereby showing the potential for SL as a pedagogy in engineering to surface implicit and counterproductive beliefs about engineering and achieve SL goals. The beliefs that are salient in SL and the concrete ways in which they manifest for students have implications for how SL is practiced in engineering and the experiences of both students and partner communities. These beliefs impact the extent to which the socio-political elements of the service are addressed, the quality and extent to which the engineering solution is aligned with social justice, and the extent to which SL is university- versus community-centric. The implications of these findings lead to recommendations to, and the need for future research on, how engineering educators might explicitly design SL curricula to identify, address, and dismantle problematic beliefs before they manifest in problematic ways in SL contexts.

Service-Learning in Audiology: A Systematic Review

Purpose Service-learning has the potential to improve student outcomes by providing students opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills in real-world contexts and is well suited to graduate education in communication sciences and disorders. However, relatively few service-learning studies in the literature focus on audiology, and the range of outcomes specific to audiology service-learning has not yet been characterized in a systematic way. The purpose of this critical review was to characterize the impact of service-learning on audiology students and clients/patients as evidenced by reflection activities and outcome measures, as well as to describe the common challenges and best practices in the available literature that may inform future research on service-learning in the field. Method A systematic search of the literature using multiple databases was completed according to standard guidelines. The impact of each study was evaluated using a standard scale of training efficacy. Study methods, including reflection activities and outcome measures, were recorded. Results Nine peer-reviewed studies on service-learning in audiology were selected. Six of the nine studies reported changes in student attitudes or awareness related to issues of clinical practice; five of the nine studies reported improvements in student knowledge/skills. Conclusions Overall, results of the review indicated benefits of service-learning to student clinicians. However, evidence for transference of service-learning benefits to organizational or departmental practice and benefit to patients/clients was lacking. Methodological limitations in the measurement of outcomes in prior works complicated evaluation of their impact; best practices were identified and synthesized for use in future research on audiology service-learning experiences.

Service Learning: A Multidimensional Approach to Meaningful Learning Outcomes in a Practice Profession

A service learning project was used to encourage social work student engagement with older adults, support a community need, and meet the course objectives, one being conducting a social work assessment. Paired with an older adult resident, students applied theoretical concepts to a practice experience to meet student learning outcomes and expand comfort levels. Fourteen students participated in the convergent-mixed methods study. Assessment scales regarding bias and knowledge were administered and written reflections were recorded. Findings suggest students experienced deeper learning from applying theory and skills and had a positive shift in perspectives of older adults through the service-learning experience.