The University of South Africa (Unisa) as comprehensive open distance learning institution (ODL institution) in South Africa is fulfilling a critical social mandate to serve people who would otherwise not have access to education, either for financial reasons, being employed, living in remote areas, or because they cannot access residential universities owing to disability (Unisa, 2008[a]: 15). In facilitating the entrée of the previously identified groups into tertiary education, Unisa has an open admission policy where students mostly have unlimited access to the system. The policy aims to cross the time, geographical, economic, social, educational, and communication distance between students, academics, courseware, and their peers and to accommodate these prospective students from diverse backgrounds (Unisa, 2008: 2). Unisa’s self-evaluation portfolio for the Commonwealth Audit during 2008 mentioned that this policy leads to the revolving door syndrome where students have unlimited access to the system but then often without success (Unisa, 2008[a]: 27). Open access poses a challenge for the training of student social workers within an ODL context. The Department of Social Work at Unisa, currently trains 70% of all social workers in South Africa (Department of Social Work - Unisa, 2008: 5). Coupled with the former, is the fact that Unisa is regarded in the tertiary landscape of South Africa as the most affordable university with the result that it attracts large number of students who have come straight from school (Kilfoil cited in Schenck, 2009: 299). In coping with the large student numbers the Department of Social Work at Unisa is challenged, apart from addressing the theoretical social work programme, to also meet the practical work requirements as set out by the Standard Generating Body of Social Work, in that it needs to provide practical placements for students to conduct their social work practical work training in completion of their Bachelor’s degree in Social Work (BSW) (Lawlor, 2008: 19). The current state of affairs is that the numbers of students requiring practical placements for social work practical work training outnumber the number of practical placements available. In responding to and addressing these challenges, the Bright Site of Sunnyside Service-learning Centre (hereafter called “Bright Site” or the Bright Site”) was established in October 2008 as a strategic project by Unisa’s Department of Social Work. The Bright Site was developed in accordance with the service-learning model proposed by the Council for Higher Education (CHE) with the emphasis on service through learning, and learning through service (Department of Social Work Unisa, 2008:6). / Social Work / M.A. (Social Science)

Doctor Educationis / Health professionals worldwide are currently inadequately trained to address the health issues of communities, particularly in developing countries where there are major health disparities. This study argues for an alternative and more appropriate education, one which would better prepare future health professionals to address these needs. The study draws attention to how the University of the Western Cape (UWC) responded to preparing its health professional graduates to better meet the needs of South African society. The thesis explores the rationale for a shift in health professions education to one which supports service-learning, locating the study within the broader developments in higher education within South Africa. The specific aim of this thesis was to evaluate a community-based interdisciplinary health promotion course offered to the undergraduate health sciences students from the faculties of Community and Health Sciences and Dentistry at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). It focused on evaluating the perceived effectiveness and the impact on the stakeholders of the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course, with the aim of developing an appropriate framework to guide the teaching of health promotion at higher education institutions in South Africa. Ten primary schools in three disadvantaged communities in the Western Cape were used as the health promotion settings for the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course. The study design was a program evaluation that used the explanatory sequential mixed-methods design. An evaluation matrix was developed, consisting of three core concepts (curriculum, community-based learning, and university-school collaboration) against which the course was evaluated. Indicators and criteria were developed for each core concept. Questionnaires were distributed to all the stakeholders, that is, the university students, the lecturers, the supervisors, and the school educators, involved in the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion Course during 2006. Focus group discussions with the stakeholders were also conducted at the UWC campus and in the Delft community. There was a good response from all the stakeholders who participated in the study (students (72.4%), lecturers (85%), supervisors (100%), and school educators (71.5%)). A main finding of the study was that the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course was relevant and up-to-date with developments in the field of health promotion. Course topics were dealt with in sufficient depth and the assignments were clear, specific, and related to the course outcomes. The interdisciplinary teaching and learning approach allowed the university students to learn and develop a better understanding of the roles and contributions that the various professions played in health promotion in a community. The course was perceived as having been of value to all the stakeholders and having a positive impact on the schools. The findings revealed that the health promotion projects implemented in the schools helped the university students to learn how to plan, implement and evaluate a project in a community setting. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the schools offered an ideal placement for university students to learn about health promotion and its application. In addressing a concern about the course not making any meaningful long-term impact on the schools and the surrounding communities, the study showed that it is important to revisit the current teaching and learning approach of the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course. It revealed that service-learning as an alternative to the field education approach would facilitate a closer relationship between theoretical and practical knowledge, where the practical application was translated into a service that met the needs of a community. The study further revealed that the collaboration model between the university and the school also needed to be reconceptualized, to include all the stakeholders as well as their needs concerning health promotion in the schools. It was recommended that the Health Promoting School framework should be seen as the overarching framework for the sustainability of school-based health promotion. In conclusion, this study showed that the recognition and establishment of university-community partnerships and reliance upon them in the educational process would provide many new opportunities for relevant and meaningful health professional education and training. These efforts would contribute to improving the quality of higher education delivered to students, thereby ensuring their competency to better meet the needs of the communities they will serve.

<p>The purpose of this study was to investigate the participation of cisgender collegiate men in community engagement activities. As a group, collegiate men disproportionately engage in unhealthy behaviors compared to their female counterparts. Additionally, they are less likely to participate in community engagement activities. Community engagement activities have a multitude of benefits for both male and female college students, yet national data shows that college men are more likely to play video games or sports when given the choice. This qualitative study used a narrative inquiry method and ten participants were interviewed using a semi-structured process. Several themes from the participants’ narratives emerged including 1) having an insular group that is representative of individual values; 2) commitment to service is deeply entrenched into career or life goals; 3) complex relationship between service and fraternity; and 4) importance of childhood and boyhood as it relates to identity; matriculated masculinity. The study encouraged reconsidering the definition of service and the power of student voice. This study contributes to several interwoven threads of scholarship focusing on the experiences of collegiate males, community engagement, and masculinity. Results suggest implications for higher education practitioners to more effectively support the needs of college men as well as considering new ways to engage more college men in community engagement activities.<br></p>

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe students’ experiences of community engagement in an Educational Psychology practicum. The theoretical framework was Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning theory. The study consulted relevant literature relating to community engagement, the experiences of students of community engagement activities, such as service-learning; the asset-based approach, positive psychology and the learning strategies relevant to the community engagement practice, namely experiential and reflective learning. A qualitative research approach was applied, guided by an interpretivist epistemology. An instrumental case study design was employed and the Department of Educational Psychology of the University of Pretoria, which was involved in the community engagement practicum, was conveniently selected for this research study. I selected one focus group for a pilot study, and later selected a second focus group, consisting of 8 purposefully selected students of the MEd Educational Psychology degree, as my research participants. Focus group interviews, reflective journals and visual data served as data collection methods. And, to further enrich the data collection process, audio-visual methods and a personal reflective journal also served as methods of data documentation Four main themes emerged as the result of thematic analysis and interpretation. Firstly, during the focus group interview, the students conversed about how they gained insight into themselves as Educational Psychologists within South Africa, such as their experiences of encountering individuals from different socio-economic groups, cultures, race and language. Secondly, the students also experienced professional development as a result of their experiences from the Educational Psychology community engagement practicum. That included experiencing themselves as being more confident, able to adapt to new situations and deeper insight into their role as a professional. Thirdly, the students discussed experiences related to integration of theory and practice. Their ability to understand theories, such as the asset-based approach and positive psychology, was enhanced as a result of putting it into practice. Finally, the students had experiences relating to structuring a community engagement practicum. The students expressed the need to receive additional information on the orientation and preparation of the practicum, as at times they had felt unsure of what was expected of them. They experienced the time spent in the practicum as being limited and discussed their experiences of writing in a reflective journal and participating in reflective dialogue Based on the findings, community engagement in this Educational Psychology practicum can be regarded as being a valuable inclusion to the training programme of these students of Educational Psychology, as it gave them the opportunity to interact with diverse clients in a South African setting. As a result of experiential learning during the practicum, students acquired several skills that they would not have gained in a classroom setting, such as the ability to work with diversity, groups, different age groups and in different contexts. Copyright / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

School leaders in a Virginia urban school district designed and implemented a reading-infused integrated curriculum to address Grade 3 students' struggles to read and comprehend grade-level text. Informed via a constructivist approach, the curriculum integrated the core subjects, reading, and service learning for developing competent readers, thinkers, and problem solvers. This instrumental case study focused on 13 Grade 3 teachers' perceptions of the integrated curriculum in regards to their students' reading achievement. Qualitative data were collected from face-to-face interviews, students' progress of work documents, and the district's integrated curriculum unit. Open coding was employed to analyze the data. Inductively, triangulated data sources were analyzed. Findings indicated that teachers perceived the integrated theme unit, teacher collaboration, and training in the area of reading to be beneficial, but that they found trainings on pedagogical practices of content integration and service learning to be lacking. Based on these findings, a project was developed to support the district's integrated curriculum program by providing a professional development program to Grade 3 teachers on pedagogical practices for implementing a constructivist-integrated curriculum. This project study can contribute to positive social change by providing the district's Grade 3 teachers with an integrated curriculum for students struggling to read and comprehend grade level text, which prepares students for school success, college, and the global work force.

Deficits in communication affect individuals with autism regarding the ability to access a free and appropriate education as well as quality of life. This research study explored the effects of a service-learning project on acquisition of social skills and reduction of problem behaviors for students who have autism. The conceptual framework for this study was based on Maslow's theory of motivation and Erickson's 8 stages of personality development. A mixed-methods design with sequential transformative strategy was used to collect quantitative data from 5 elementary students who have autism during involvement in service learning; the Social Skills Improvement System was used and was analyzed using a t test. Qualitative data derived from field notes were coded and thematically analyzed. Although the differences were not statistically significant, the social skills did improve and the problem behaviors did decline. Qualitative data also supported the supposition that a positive change may have occurred and those students' basic needs were being met through leadership opportunities. Although the results of this study appear promising, the size of the study limits generalization and further research is needed. Service learning may be an effective intervention for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) allowing positive social change. Service learning may allow individuals with ASD to have their basic needs met; increase positive social interactions with others; help decrease unexpected behavior; and reduce stress and depression for themselves, their family members, and their educators.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Health professionals worldwide are currently inadequately trained to address the health issues of communities, particularly in developing countries where there are major health disparities. This study argues for an alternative and more appropriate education, one which would better prepare future health professionals to address these needs. The study draws attention to how the University of the Western Cape (UWC) responded to preparing its health professional graduates to better meet the needs of South African society. The thesis explores the rationale for a shift in health professions education to one which supports service-learning, locating the study within the broader developments in higher education within South Africa. The specific aim of this thesis was to evaluate a community-based interdisciplinary health promotion course offered to the undergraduate health sciences students from the faculties of Community and Health Sciences and Dentistry at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). It focused on evaluating the perceived effectiveness and the impact on the stakeholders of the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course, with the aim of developing an appropriate framework to guide the teaching of health promotion at higher education institutions in South Africa. Ten primary schools in three disadvantaged communities in the Western Cape were used as the health promotion settings for the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course. The study design was a programme evaluation that used the explanatory sequential mixed-methods design. An evaluation matrix was developed, consisting of three core concepts (curriculum, community-based learning, and university-school collaboration) against which the course was evaluated. Indicators and criteria were developed for each core concept. Questionnaires were distributed to all the stakeholders, that is, the university students, the lecturers, the supervisors and the school educators, involved in the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion Course during 2006. Focus group discussions with the stakeholders were also conducted at the UWC campus and in the Delft community. There was a good response from all the stakeholders who participated in the study (students (72.4%), lecturers (85%), supervisors (100%) and school educators (71.5%)). A main finding of the study was that the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course was relevant and up-to-date with developments in the field of health promotion. Course topics were dealt with in sufficient depth and the assignments were clear, specific and related to the course outcomes. The interdisciplinary teaching and learning approach allowed the university students to learn and develop a better understanding of the roles and contributions that the various professions played in health promotion in a community. The course was perceived as having been of value to all the stakeholders and having a positive impact on the schools. The findings revealed that the health promotion projects implemented in the schools helped the university students to learn how to plan, implement and evaluate a project in a community setting. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the schools offered an ideal placement for university students to learn about health promotion and its application. In addressing a concern about the course not making any meaningful long-term impact on the schools and the surrounding communities, the study showed that it is important to revisit the current teaching and learning approach of the Interdisciplinary Health Promotion course. It revealed that service-learning as an alternative to the field education approach would facilitate a closer relationship between theoretical and practical knowledge, where the practical application was translated into a service that met the needs of a community. The study further revealed that the collaboration model between the university and the school also needed to be reconceptualized, to include all the stakeholders as well as their needs in relation to health promotion in the schools. It was recommended that the Health Promoting School framework should be seen as the overarching framework for the sustainability of school-based health promotion. In conclusion, this study showed that the recognition and establishment of university community partnerships and reliance upon them in the educational process, would provide many new opportunities for relevant and meaningful health professional education and training. These efforts would contribute to improving the quality of higher education delivered to students, thereby ensuring their competency to better meet the needs of the communities they will serve.

<p>This paper delves into the current definitions and ideas of the Service-Learning pedagogy and how it ties into community engagement. The importance of service learning and community engagement is talked about in this paper as well as the proven benefits of both. The goal of this paper is to answer and better understand students’ relationships to service-learning courses such as why they take them and how to better engage them in the learning</p>

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