Learning in vivo

Problem-based learning through community engagement

“Service learning and problem-based learning (PBL) are distinct”, yet related and potentially synergistic paradigms say McDonald and Ogden-Barnes (2013: 281) and indicate that:

• The essence of problem-based learning (PBL), as form of work-integrated learning (WIL) entail exposure of students to ‘real world’ or simulated organisational or operational challenges, and the development of solutions thereto
• Service learning is deemed valuable in developing the social conscious of students, and is actively promoted as an educational strategy for developing stronger links between the educational institution and its community

PBL resorts within the constructivist paradigm, and is aimed at developing the abilities of students “to think, collaborate, and synthesise in the pursuit of solutions, applying personal, interpersonal, professional and academic learning and experiences to a ‘real world’ issue” (McDonald and Ogden-Barnes, 2013: 281). However, there is a distinct difference PBL and problem-solving learning, in that the latter is concentrated “on eliciting answers to questions posed specifically in relation to the discipline curriculum” they indicate. Furthermore, PBL “is characterized by flexibility and diversity in the sense that it can be implemented in a variety of ways in and across different subjects and disciplines in diverse contexts” they point out. The ultimate success of PBL as “learning strategy is the identification, design and communication of the problem itself, a factor which has been revealed to be complex and multi-dimensional” (p. 282).

Service learning, as form of experiential learning, which entail students and community members together attending to community issues of concern. These issues provide context for academically rigorous assignments, connecting community experience with specific teaching and learning goals. Service learning (SL) is labelled by many alternatives, such as “community-engagement, community-pedagogy, community-knowledge exchange and community-based learning” (McDonald and Ogden-Barnes, 2013: 283). The essence of SL involves students volunteering and applying time, intellect, skills and abilities, as part of their curriculum, towards community advancement. SL may be subject or discipline specific or integrate multiple disciplines in pursuing an educational institution’s community engagement vision and goals. The implementation of effective SL or community engagement (CE) initiatives entail significant resource implications, and may result in real-world versus academic-world contradictions, caution McDonald and Ogden-Barnes (2013: 283).

McDonald and Ogden-Barnes (2013: 290) present the following recommendations with regard to the PBL-SL/CE interface:

• Consider [the] resource implications early and dedicate a working group to design, market and project manage the event
• Position the event against the institution’s community engagement agenda to demonstrate relevance and build internal rapport
• Secure senior management ownership/buy in
• Create a distinct brand, theme and set of promotional resources for the event that is relevant and appealing to both students and stakeholders
• Discuss and manage stakeholder expectations in relation to the problem or challenge[s] identified
• Encourage inter-disciplinary participation via inter-school promotion
• Actively communicate the benefits of participation to all parties: students, faculty, stakeholders
• Provide in situ support to help overcome any learning hurdles
• Ensure strong dialogue between students and organizations over the duration of the event to ensure that the team’s thinking and ideas remains on track

McDonald, S. & Ogden-Barnes, S. (2013). Problem-based service learning with a heart: Organizational and student expectations and experiences in a postgraduate not-for-profit workshop event. Asia-Pacific Journal of Cooperative Education, 14(4), 281-293. Electronically accessible from https://www.ijwil.org/files/APJCE_14_4_281_293.pdf

‘Moving the needle’, through pursuing learning opportunities when disasters happen

The use of the phrase “proactively ‘move the needle’ toward”, by Heinz et al. (2021: 2), intrigued me. It is a powerful idiom, or metaphor, meaning “to cause a noticeable change in something. The imagery refers to the pointer (‘needle’) on a measuring instrument, which moves to indicate the level that has been reached” (Farlex Dictionary of Idioms). Synonyms for ‘move the needle’ include phrases with similar meaning, such as: to ‘make an impression’, or to ‘alter the situation’, or to ‘significantly change the course’, or to ‘make a noticeable difference’, or to ‘shift/turn/transform a situation’, or to ‘make a big difference’, or to ‘let the genie out of the bottle’ (Power Thesaurus).

Disasters, whether natural or human-made, disrupt the lives of people. Often post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related problems develop as result of the impact of disasters. Disaster relief initiatives do offer significant community service and learning opportunities. The goal of intervention generally is to prevent a lasting impact of “community trauma and proactively ‘move the needle’ toward resilience” say Heinz et al. (2021: 2). The aftermath of wildfires, for example, present learning opportunities with regard to “mental health resources and services for personal recovery and long-term community resilience building”, and “mind–body yoga program and training in skills for psychological recovery (SPR)”.

A reflection on the role of public libraries before, during, and after Hurricane Michael in Florida, in 2018, revealed the reliance of vulnerable rural communities on public librarians for catastrophic weather support, say Mardis et al. (2021). However, disaster policies tend to be incomplete, outdated, or non-existing. With the frequency, severity, and variety of disasters increasing substantially; small public libraries often “serve as shelters, distribution points, and ad hoc government offices”, say Mardis et al. (2021: 769). The public librarians are often designated first responders and fulfilling a variety of roles such as “institutional supporter, collection manager, information disseminator, internal planner, community catalyst, government partner, educator, trainer, and information community builder”. It is recognised that “public librarians are uniquely positioned as key community stakeholders who assist communities to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters”, however, small rural public libraries are often ill equipped, say Mardis et al. (2021: 770).

Universities could ‘move the needle’ by having a community engagement disaster event plan ready, which includes experiential learning opportunities students. A range of potential outcomes could be identified. The preparation before, as well as reflection during and after formulated. The evidence requirements of learning, and the assessment criteria formulated. Not only would students benefit from learning, but also communities from the support rendered, and the university would gain.

Although disasters come in various forms of intensity, impact, and duration; the pattern of handling is similar, “beginning with preparation and planning for a possible event, then responding once the event occurs, followed by recovering from the event, while taking ongoing measures to mitigate the impact of recurrences” say Bland and McLain (2021: 10). Some come with advance warning, enabling alerts, whereas others arise with no warning. They categorised tragedies into four types, namely natural disasters, human-initiated tragedies, operational tragedies, and borderless tragedies.

Bland, R & McLain, L.F. (Jr). (2021). Managing through tragedies. Public Management, January, 10-15. International City/County Management Association (ICMA). Electronically accessible from https://icma.org/articles/pm-magazine/managing-through-tragedies

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/moved+the+needle

Heinz, A. J., Wiltsey-Stirman, S., Sharin, T., Loskot, T., Mason, D., Jaworski, B. K., & McGovern, M. (2021). Rising from the ashes by expanding access to community care after disaster: an origin story of the wildfire mental health collaborative and preliminary findings. Psychological Services. Electronically accessible from. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ser0000553

Mardis, M.A., Jones, F.R., Tenney, C.S., & Leonarczyk, Z. (2021). Category 4: Constructing knowledge about public librarians’ roles in natural disasters: A heuristic inquiry into community resiliency in Florida’s Hurricane Michael. Library Trends, 69(4), 768-789. Johns Hopkins University Press. Electronically accessible from doi:10.1353/lib.2020.0046.

Power Thesaurus. https://www.powerthesaurus.org/move_the_needle/synonyms

Learning of a different kind occurs when opportunity to apply

Bringing life to learning, a report about experiential learning at Ontario universities, states in the Introduction (Council of Ontario Universities, 2014: 12 - Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p12) that when there is no exam to study for, no essay to write, a different kind of learning occurs. An experiential learning opportunity is where curiosity gets tested in the real world, where knowledge and skills that have been learned are applied to a real life project.

The report further addresses experiential learning issues pertaining to:

• When students of work-integrated learning programs land dream jobs (pp. 13-14)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p13 &  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p14
  
• Cultivation of business leadership (pp. 15-16)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p15 &  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p16
• Innovations in technology (p. 17)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p17
• Hearing from students and graduates (p. 19)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p19 &  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p20
• Students shaping communities (pp. 21-22) Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p21 &  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p22
• What students and graduates are saying (p. 23)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p23
• Bridging of borders (p. 24)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p24
• Students facilitating healthy living (pp. 25-26)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p25 &  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p26
• Students enriching communities with the arts (p. 27)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p27
• Universities adding value through experiential learning (p.29)  Download Council_Ontario_Universities_EL_Report_p29

Council of Ontario Universities. 2014. Bringing life to learning, at Ontario universities — Experiential Learning Report. Toronto: Council of Ontario Universities. Electronically accessible from: http://www.cou.on.ca/publications/reports/pdfs/march262014---experiential-learning-report?utm_content=buffer89cdc&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Community engagement grounded in three interrelated elements

 

Swan, Paterson and Bielefeldt (2014, 362) provide a broad definition for community engagement (CE), namely:

CE in engineering education is a form of active, experiential learning where students, instructors, and the community partners work collaboratively on projects that benefit a real community need and provide a rich learning experience for all participants. The CE must be properly planned, implemented, and assessed with expected outcomes, educational and others, in mind. Critical reflection is part of this assessment effort.

This definition serves as umbrella making provision for several kinds of service-based learning activities. However, three interrelated elements are highlighted, namely:

1. The efforts performed must be authentic; could be single or multi-disciplinary; but require conection of service and learning.
2. The service, grounded in the needs of a community, must be appropriately developed by jointly by stakeholders, and intentional. The service deepens the learning and sustains the partnership.
3. The primary goal of the service is learning, but is enhanced by the service. The learning need both to be planned, in accordance to the educational objectives, and to be assessed accordingly. Structured, critical relfection deepens the learning.

Swan, Paterson and Bielefeldt (2014, 366) summarise the outcomes and benefits of community engagement Download Service_learning_benefits

Swan, C.; Paterson, K. and Bielefeldt, A.R. 2014. Community engagement in engineering education as a way to increase inclusiveness, 357-372. In A. Johri and B.M. Olds. 2014. Cambridge handbook of engineering education research. New York: Cambridge Press.

A typology and continuum of service and learning

The term service-learning dates back to 1964 to distinguish community service programmes at Oak Ridge Associated Universities explain Swan, Paterson and Bielefeldt (2014, 358). Over the two decades ending 2003, no fewer than 200 different definitions of service learning were published.

Sigmon, cited by Swan, Paterson and Bielefeldt (2014, 360), produced a typology comprising four quadrants varying the emphasis of either or both service and learning:

Furco, also cited by Swan, Paterson and Bielefeldt (2014, 360), felt it necessary to differentiate various forms or modes, such as volunteerism and community service versus field education and internships. He produced a two-dimensional continuum, namely with the focus varying from service to learning; and the beneficiary varying from the recipient of service-learning to the provider thereof.

Swan, C.; Paterson, K. and Bielefeldt, A.R. 2014. Community engagement in engineering education as a way to increase inclusiveness, 357-372. In A. Johri and B.M. Olds. 2014. Cambridge handbook of engineering education research. New York: Cambridge Press.