Assignment: Making Learner-Centered Connections
I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.
—Confucius
Throughout the course, you have explored the way service learning can be used as tool for engagement and learner success. This Assignment will help you to see and understand the learner-centered foundations of service learning. As you reconsider the learner-centered curriculum models (Cullen, Harris, & Hill, 2012), you will look for connections to the service learning instructional model.
To prepare
Read the week’s Learning Resources and consider the differences between community service and service learning.
View the videos assigned as part of this week’s Learning Resources, which focus on service learning in action.
Revisit or review the articles provided in Week 3 Learning Resources and the articles you have analyzed to begin your annotated bibliography.
To submit
Construct a visual presentation (e.g., chart, graph, diagram, Prezi presentation) showing the connections between the learner-centered curriculum model and the model of service learning. Keep in mind the following:
Focus your visual representation on how service learning overlaps with and extends a learner-centered curriculum.
Indicate in your graphic any ways in which they do not fit well together.
Your visual should stand-alone, be self-explanatory, and easily understood.
Your visual should be in .pdf, .jpg, Word, or Prezi file format.
In addition to constructing your visual presentation, write a 1-page paper in which you answer the following questions:
How does service learning fit into, extend, or amplify the learner-centered curriculum?
After reviewing both models, what are the similarities and differences?
Include one or more examples from the videos assigned as part of this week’s Learning Resources
Include in your submission a cover sheet, the graphic representation, and the 1-page paper.
By Day 7
Submit your Assignment.
Week 4: Debunking the Myths of Service Learning—Surveying the Landscape
In 1961, de Tocqueville noted “Americans’ habit of forming voluntary associations to advance their own and the community’s interests” (Furco and Billig, 2002, p. 4). This week, you examine clear distinctions between volunteerism, also known as community service, and the curricular innovation, service learning. Focus on how you have witnessed community service or volunteerism in your own setting. How might these efforts be connected to learning? Use these previous interactions to begin analyzing your own and your learners’ experiences. Carefully consider how service learning might enhance an already crowded curriculum and engage learners.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
Compare volunteerism and service learning
Compare the common elements of service learning and a learner-centered curriculum model
Assess the impact of service learning and learner-centered instruction on student engagement
Learning Resources
Required Readings
Cullen, R., Harris, M., & Hill, R. R. (2012). The learner-centered curriculum: Design and implementation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Cullen, R. (2012). The learner-centered curriculum: Design and implementation. Copyright 2012 by John Wiley & Sons. Reprinted by permission of John Wiley & Sons via the Copyright Clearance Center.
Chapter 3, “The Learner-Centered Curriculum” (pp. 44–72)
Chapter 5, “Learner-Centered Design in Practice” (pp. 105–126)
Furco, A., & Billig, S. H. (Eds.) (2002). Service learning: The essence of the pedagogy. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Service Learning: the essence of pedagogy, 1st Ed. by Furco, A. and Billig, S. Copyright 2002 by Information Age Publishing. Reprinted by permission of Information Age Publishing via the Copyright Clearance Center.
Chapter 1, “Community Service and Service-Learning in America: The State of the Art” (pp. 3–22)
Chapter 2, “Is Service-Learning Really Better Than Community Service? A Study of High School Service Program Outcomes” (pp. 23–52)
Required Media
CCI4MDC (Producer). (2011a). Learning in deed – Part 1 [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/uFkWojSwMz0
CCI4MDC (Producer). (2011b). Learning in deed – Part 2 [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/h4E_G-NCNNk
Laureate Education (Producer). (2016a). Fallen heroes project [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 11 minutes.
Accessible player –Downloads–Download Video w/CCDownload AudioDownload Transcript
Week 3: Selecting Effective Tools for Effective Social Change
Service Learning is a particularly fertile way of involving young people in community service, because it ties helping others to what they are learning in the classroom.
—General Colin Powell
Service learning has long been viewed as a bridge between the classroom and the community for young learners. Through these learning experiences, young learners experience how their actions may impact their community and their daily lives. This week, you begin to build your understanding of the foundations of service learning and the ways innovation continues to transform service learning. Take particular note of the ways service learning compares to other learner-centered curriculum tenets and how the definitions, like those of leadership, vary. Understanding the roots of service learning will provide you with a sound foundation for the project you will build as part of your Service Learning Strategy Project.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
Analyze approaches to service learning in educational environments
Apply the curricular concept of service learning to a social change perspective
Develop annotated bibliographies related to service learning
Learning Resources
Required Readings
Cullen, R., Harris, M., & Hill, R. R. (2012). The learner-centered curriculum: Design and implementation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Cullen, R. (2012). The learner-centered curriculum: Design and implementation. Copyright 2012 by John Wiley & Sons. Reprinted by permission of John Wiley & Sons via the Copyright Clearance Center.
Chapter 3, “The Learner-Centered Curriculum” (pp. 45–72)
Chapter 5, “Learner-Centered Design in Practice” (pp. 105–126)
Furco, A., & Billig, S. H. (Eds.) (2002). Service learning: The essence of the pedagogy. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing. Service Learning: the essence of pedagogy, 1st Ed. by Furco, A. and Billig, S. Copyright 2002 by Information Age Publishing. Reprinted by permission of Information Age Publishing via the Copyright Clearance Center. Chapter 1, “Community Service and Service-Learning in America: The State of the Art” (pp. 3–22)
Moely, B. E., Furco, A., & Reed, J. (2008). Charity and social change: The impact of individual preferences on service-learning outcomes. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 15(1), 37–48. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ831381.pdf
National Youth Leadership Council. (n.d.). Service learning. Retrieved from https://www.nylc.org/page/WhatisService-Learning
Wade, R. C. (2000). Beyond charity: Service learning for social justice. Social Studies and the Young Learner, 12(4), 6–9. Retrieved from http://www.socialstudies.org/sites/default/files/publications/yl/1204/120401.html
Walden University. (2015a). Q. How do I write an annotated bibliography? Retrieved from http://academicanswers.waldenu.edu/faq/72682
Welch, M. (2010). O.P.E.R.A.: A first letter mnemonic and rubric for conceptualizing and implementing service learning. Issues in Educational Research, 20(1), 76–82.
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