Provide institutional support to enable relationship-building in critical service-learning¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The article recommends that nurturing critical interpersonal relationships requires more intensive time for students and professors and institutional support to create space for intentional relationship building. Specific supports include "increasing the course credit for service-learning courses for students and providing advanced learning credits, assistantships, stipends, and research opportunities for peer mentors." Institutions could also offer reduced course loads, course assistants, and stipends to support professors. The article also calls for more resources and smaller class sizes to support peer-mentoring.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Institutional commitment to allocating resources for relationship-building

Constraints¶

• Many view critical service-learning as too time consuming and resource intensive; professors worry it will interfere with course learning and tenure/promotion

Target Learners¶

• Undergraduate students in service-learning courses
• Faculty teaching service-learning courses
• Peer mentors (SLAMs)

Target Learning Goals¶

• Civic engagement attitudes and justice-oriented citizenship development

Affordances¶

• Critical Service Learning Three Component Model

Related Strategies¶

• Methodological orientations and strategies for professors to promote integrated learning of civic competence
• Advance community-based lifelong learning through mentoring relationships connecting local expertise with desired learners

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Harkins, D. A., Grenier, L. I., Irizarry, C., Robinson, E., Ray, S., & Shea, L.-M. (2020). Building relationships for critical service-learning. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 26(2), 21–38. https://doi.org/10.3998/mjcsloa.3239521.0026.202