Background

How service-learning works in history courses
This poster looks at History of Women in America from the 1870s to the Present, the second half of the womens history survey at the University of Kansas. Previously, I was the Director of the Center for Service Learning at Rockhurst University, where my job was to introduce and support other faculty members in their use of service-learning. One course that I taught at Rockhurst, Womens Studies 2000, provided the underlying design for this KU course that I augmented to include service-learning.

I come to teaching from a community development background that includes work in the Peace Corps and AmeriCorps. Because of those experiences, I think of teaching as a civic project, and I encourage students to use the classroom to develop their own sense of civic engagement. Therefore, I see service-learning as more than just a pedagogical method, but also as a way to encourage students to engage with the community. Service-learning works in history courses when students learn about issues through background reading in preparation for interactions with diverse communities.

Implementation

Student preparation a key
I think that if a teacher is using service-learning, it is very important to prepare students for their projects through a service-learning workshop. Although students had a choice about whether they would do service-learning or a research project in my class, I had all the students attend the workshop. I wanted all of my students to gain more knowledge about service-learning in order to make informed decisions about how to connect classroom learning with community issues.

As an outcome of the workshop, I asked students to fill in a pre-service map and determine learning goals for themselves. I wanted them to think about contributions that they might give to the community or places where they might learn from their experiences, but I also felt it was important to help students think about the logistical and practical nature of volunteering.

In addition to the workshop, I prepared service-learning packets for each student. The packets provided deadlines and visible details about the different facets of the service-learning project, a hands-on method that kept the students relevantly informed about this project.

Student Performance

Service-learning deepened student understanding
When I look at the student test grades for the semester, I think it is difficult to distinguish between those students who did the service-learning project and those who did the research project. However, I do believe that students who chose the service-learning tract were more engaged with ways that historical issues connect to contemporary problems. Their experiences in the community helped them understand that the race, class, and gender issues that existed decades ago often still exist today.

Reflections

Students connected present to historical events
In order for service-learning to be useful, it is critical that students engage in reflection during their service and after it has been completed. With this end in mind, I encouraged my students to use writing as a means of reflection about the situations that they encountered in the community. As the semester continued, I noted that the quality of their reflections improved. Initially the students focused in their individual experiences; the later writing indicated that they were able to connect the present to historical events through specific readings.

While the service-learning students did not engage in formal research beyond readings assigned for class, I do believe they gained as much understanding of the historical past as research-tract students. Their performance indicated a slightly higher level in their writing, participation, and exams.