Service learning broadens education

It’s easy for students to succumb to the cocoon of campus life. Stephanie Smith, assistant professor of human ecology, has seen it happen often.

“I’ve known students who’ve gone through their entire time here without getting beyond the campus,” she says.

To Smith, incorporating community service into classes — called service learning — is a potent remedy to campus isolation. Consequently, her students develop projects in collaboration with community agencies.

The campus community is invited to attend a special grand re-opening reception at the Red Gym on Friday, April 9, from 3:45-5:15 p.m., which will include tours of the facility from 4-5:30 p.m. And on Saturday, April 10, tours, music, a photo exhibition and other festivities will welcome visitors to the grand re-opening of the historic landmark. Other activities also are scheduled. Built in 1894, the Red Gym began for military training, preparing the militia for labor unrest during the late 1800s, special forces in both world wars and ROTC cadets. In addition, it has served as an infirmary, venue for balls and dances, and the final destination for students registering for classes until 1983. Plans were laid to restore the architectural treasure in 1989, and official national landmark status was granted in 1993. All grand re-opening activities are free. Information: Yvonne Fangmeyer, 265-2407/fangmeyer@redgym.wisc.edu.

Details UW-Madison’s Morgridge Center can provide guidelines for instructors interested in adding a service learning component to a class. The center also can help match people with skills and community agencies that need them. Reach the center at (608) 263-2432. See also: National conference to highlight public service

Junior Julia Buran worked with Smith to develop “Family Fun Nights,” a weekly program with the Dane County Parent Council/Head Start and Family Enhancement. Buran says volunteering has broadened her education by helping her make professional contacts and improve communication skills. Most importantly, though, community service has helped Buran take her place as a contributing member of the larger society.

“Service learning has connected me to Madison — it’s given me a sense of belonging, rather than just attending school here,” she says.

Smith and Buran are at the forefront of a growing trend to incorporate service learning into the classroom. They will discuss their experiences next month at a three-day national conference hosted by UW–Madison to explore the mission of land grant colleges and universities concerning service learning.

The idea of volunteering as coursework has been gaining momentum in the last several years, both at UW–Madison and other institutions. UW–Madison Dean of Students Mary Rouse will become an assistant chancellor in charge of strengthening and expanding programs linking community service opportunities and the university curriculum. Susan VandeHei Dibbell, director of UW–Madison’s five-year-old Morgridge Center for Public Service, says UW–Madison has enjoyed a vibrant service tradition since at least the turn of the last century. Although the Morgridge Center was not endowed until 1994, the campus volunteer services office has been pairing university citizens with community volunteer opportunities since 1974.

Dibbell estimates about 80 UW–Madison courses now require community service. The average at colleges and universities identified as having a strong commitment to public service is about 50, she says.

“Departments vary, but we’ve seen a great deal of interest here from professional schools, such as business and pharmacy.”

The School of Pharmacy service learning program is just two years old, but according to Connie Kraus, a clinical associate professor who is helping the school develop its service learning initiative, the fact that pharmacy students fulfill volunteer obligations early in their college careers is an important advantage.

“When they’re out there in agencies students can see what kind of pharmacy — working with the young, with aged adults or in a hospital — would be best for them,” Kraus says. “Students also begin to appreciate the perspective of the client.”

For first-year pharmacy student Scott Procknow, volunteering at Madison’s Ronald McDonald House for seriously ill children has been all that and more.

“Volunteering provides real hand-on experience you can’t get in a classroom,” he says. “I also have a great opportunity to practice communicating with entire families.”

The School of Social Work has long used service learning principles in its education. Mona Wasow, professor of social work, has been teaching community service courses for the last 29 years. She says it’s important for students to see first-hand the differences in the real and textbook worlds. “What sounds good on paper may not work as smoothly in real life,” she observes.

The real world students come up against often presents troubling aspects. Clients can be are difficult. Treatment plans may not apply to a particular patient. Conflicts might go unresolved. Feathers get ruffled. Joanne Legatta, a senior in UW–Madison’s Medical Scholars program for pre-med students, is working with the Wisconsin Committee to Prevent Child Abuse. Through one of Stephanie Smith’s human ecology classes, Legatta is organizing a lecture series aimed at improving dialogue with “pro-spanking parents,” as she terms them.

Right now, Legatta and her colleagues are interviewing members of the state Legislature, community leaders and people of various cultural backgrounds to determine attitudes about spanking. “It’s important to know where people are coming from, so outreach programs that are intended to help children don’t come across as accusatory and confrontational,” she says.

Smith says learning about other perspectives may be the very heart of community service, and perhaps of higher education itself. Many if not most service learning classes require students to reflect on their volunteer experiences, and Smith says that can be the most valuable aspect.

“I connect service learning with reflection and critical thinking. We discuss verbally and in journals and papers how experiences in the community help students think about issues such as homelessness, welfare reform, or health problems that accompany poverty,” she says.

In that respect, service learning fleshes out academic theory, Smith says. Mona Wasow agrees: “Students read about ‘the schizophrenic’ in textbooks. ‘The schizophrenic’ becomes ‘John’ or ‘Mary’ when the person is a client. Service learning gives the concept a name and face.” The ability of service to attach a person to an idea also encourages students to reflect on themselves, Smith says. “I’m convinced this reflection leads to a more integrated education. Isn’t that what the university experience is all about?”