College Of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences
Cal Poly Pomona

College of Letters, Arts, and Social Sciences

 

CLASS Service Learning

Service-Learning @ Cal Poly Pomona

Building upon the basic service-learning criteria, the Cal Poly Pomona Service-Learning Designation Policy requires that a service-learning course shall:

  1. be a component of a university course and be described in the syllabus;
  2. integrate community issues and classroom learning;
  3. include preparation of students for the community environment such as tours, presentations, and/or readings;
  4. provide structured opportunities, such as writing assignments and group discussion, for students to reflect on the connections between their service experience and course objectives;
  5. include an assessment of student ability to integrate the academic and community experience;
  6. take place at sites evaluated and approved by the course instructor in partnership with the community;
  7. be evaluated by the student, community partner, and the instructor.

In spite of these specific criteria, however, there are many different models of service-learning, and different models are going to be appropriate for different courses. Six basic models are described below. Whether creating a new service learning course or reconstructing an existing one, you should explore the appropriate model (or mode l hybrid) for your course.

This exert is from Cal Poly Pomona’s service-learning definition, passed by the Academic Senate in Spring 2003.

 

Six Models of Service-Learning

1.) “Pure” Service-Learning

These are courses that send students out into the community to serve. These courses have as their intellectual core the idea of service to communities by students, volunteers, or engaged citizens. They are not typically lodged in any one discipline.

2.) Discipline-Based Service-Learning

In this model, students are expected to have a presence in the community throughout the semester and reflect on their experiences on a regular basis throughout the semester using course content as a basis for their analysis and understanding.

3.) Problem-Based Service-Learning

According to this model, students (or teams of students) relate to the community much as “consultants” working for a “client.” Students work with community members to understand a particular community problem or need. This model presumes that the students wil l have some knowledge they can draw upon to make recommendations to the community or develop a solution to the problem: architecture students might design a park; business students might develop a website; or botany students might identify non-native plants and suggest eradication methods.

4.) Capstone Courses

These courses are generally designed for majors and minors in a given discipline and are offered almost exclusively to students in their final year. Capstone courses ask students to draw upon the knowledge they have obtained throughout their coursework and combine it with relevant service work in the community. The goal of capstone courses is usually either to explore a new topic or to synthesize students’ understanding of their discipline. These courses offer an excellent way to help students make the transition from the world of theory to the world of practice by helping them establish professional contacts and gather personal experience.

5.) Service Internships

Like traditional internships, these experiences are more intense than typical service-learning courses, with students working as many as 10 to 20 hours a week in a community setting. As in traditional internships, students are generally charged with producing a body of work that is of value to the community or site. However, unlike traditional internships, service internships have regular and ongoing reflective opportunities that help students analyze their new experiences using discipline-based theories. These reflective opportunities can be done with small groups of peers, with one-on-one meetings with faculty advisors, or even electronically with a faculty member providing feedback. Service internships are further distinguished from traditional internships by their focus on reciprocity: the idea that the community and the student benefit equally from the experience.

6.) Undergraduate Community-Based Action Research

A relatively new approach that is gaining popularity, community-based action research is similar to an independent study option for the rare student who is highly experienced in community work. Community-based action research can also be effective with small classes or groups of students. In this model, students work closely with faculty members to learn research methodology while serving as advocates for communities.