Culture and the Human Experience (ANTH 1010) Service Learning: Journals and Reflection
Melissa Schaefer, PhD
Rationale: Service learning is an instructional method where course learning objectives are met through engaging in activities that fill community needs. The course objectives that will be met through service learning include gaining an understanding of the cultural diversity found throughout the world, identifying ethnocentrism and communicating effectively about diverse cultural practices from a cultural relativity perspective. Service learning offers a unique opportunity to learn about cultural anthropology through nontraditional instructional methods and to apply this knowledge to benefit the community.
Directive: Students will engage in a minimum of 12 hours of service with a culturally diverse population. Ideally, these hours should be spread evenly throughout the semester. The choice of community partner is up to the student, but must be selected from the list below:
Utah Association for Intellectual Disabilities
Asian Association of Utah
City of South Salt Lake After School Programs
Alpha Home Health and Hospice
Homeless Youth Resource Center
Neighborhood House
Crossroads Urban Center
Guadalupe School
Five Parks Community Action Center
Sunnyvale Neighborhood Center
Splore
Sunday Anderson Westside Senior Center
YMCA
Utah Pride Center
Some partners on the list have evening and weekend availability; contact me if you need to know which ones. The community partner selected should include a population about which you have pre-conceived notions or that makes you uncomfortable. You should select your community partner the first week of class, make contact the second week of class, and complete the partnership agreement and begin service the third week of class. Twelve reflective journal entries, five short assignments, and a final multimedia project will be the basis of the assessment for the service learning experience.
Journal Entries Twelve dated journal entries are required before and during the service activity. Each journal entry should be dated and 2-3 paragraphs in length; alternative formats (e.g. multi-media) are encouraged. The prompts are listed below and these should be included at the beginning of each journal entry. The first prompt should be addressed prior to beginning service, the second prompt should be addressed after the first day of service, and the final prompt should be addressed at the conclusion of your service. The remaining prompts can be addressed on your own schedule, but should be limited to no more than two journal entries each week. Journal entries lacking substantial content and reflection will not receive full points.
Reflection Project Create a multi-media project (e.g. video, slide show, song, poem, poster, letter, etc.) for students of the next semester reflecting on the service-learning experience. This project might include the following examination of your efforts in the course:
What your expectations were;
Your fears;
Reflect on the experience itself, both positive and negative;
How the service learning affected you;
What you wish you had done beforehand;
What you would do differently, tips for success;
How successfully you addressed the learning outcomes for the course;
Connections to other courses;
Any other reflections that are relevant to your thinking and learning in the course.
This project should provide deep reflection on your experience and it should be engaging and creative.
You should include this project and five of your most insightful journal entries in your SLCC Gen Ed ePortfolio--they are the signature assignments for this course. Showcase the journal entries that you have selected and your reflection project in the Outside the Classroom page of your ePortfolio.