6 Models for Integrating

Civic Engagement in Coursework

"PURE" SERVICE-LEARNING
These are courses that send students out into the comunity to serve. These courses have as their intellectual core the idea of service to communities by students, volunteers, or other engaged citizens. They are not typically lodged in any one discipline.

DISCIPLINE-BASED SERVICE-LEARNING
In this model, students are expected to have a presence in the community throughout the semester adn reflect on their experineces on a regular basis throughout the semester using course content as a basis for thier analysis and understanding.

PROBLEM-BASED SERVICE-LEARNING
According to this model, students (or teams of students) relate to the coummunity much as "consultants" working for "clients." Students work with coummunity members to understand a particular community problem or need. This model presumes that the students will have some knowledge they can draw upon to make recommendations to the community or develop a solution to the problem; business students might develop a website or botany students might identify non-native plants and suggest eradication methods.

CAPSTONE COURSES
These courses are generally designed for majors and minors in a given discipline and are offered almost exclusively to students in their final year. Capstone courses ask students to draw upon the knowledge they have obtained throughout their coursework and combine it with relevant service work in the community. The goal of capstone courses is usually either exploring a new topic or synthesizing students understanding of their discipline. These courses offer an excellent way to help students transition from the world of theory to the world of practice by helping them make professional contacts and gather personal experience.

SERVICE INTERNSHIPS
Like traditional internships, these experiences are more intense than typical service-learning courses, with students working as many as 10 to 20 hours a week in a coummunity setting. As in traditional internships, students are generally charged with producing a body of work that is of value to the coummmunity or site. Service internships have regular and on-going reflective opportunities that help students analyze their new experiences using discipline-based theories. These reflective opportunities can be done with small groups of peers, with one-on-one meetings with faculty advisors, or even electronically with a faculty member providing feedback. Service internships are further distinguished from traditional internships by their focus on reciprocity: the idea that the community and student benefit equally from the experience.

COMMUNITY-BASED ACTION RESEARCH
A relatively new approach that is gaining popularity, community-baased action research is similar to an independent study option for the rare student who is highly experienced in coummunity work. Community-based action research can also be effective with small classes or groups of students. In this model., students work closely with faculty members to learn resarch methodology while serving as advocates for communities.