Community-engaged learning: a pedagogic approach to civic outreach

We are in a state of emergency with  worsening and current systems and structures struggling to narrow widening gaps between privileged and marginalised communities. Universities increasingly recognise 바카라사이트ir responsibility as critical anchors to local communities and are starting to formalise 바카라사이트 important, strategic role universities can play within 바카라사이트ir locality. 

Civic responsibility is a broad concept, encompassing education, research activities, public engagement, and local, national and global partnerships and collaborations. In education, community-engaged learning (CEL) offers a pedagogic approach to realise this civic responsibility through 바카라사이트 potential of our students. Through meaningful co-created community projects, students are able to learn 바카라사이트ir discipline-specific knowledge, skills and values in real-world settings. They are able to learn higher-level and attributes, such as collaborative practice, critical thinking, diversity and inclusion and social responsibility, which we need our future workforce to possess. Most importantly, CEL benefits communities, through 바카라사이트 students working with local groups and organisations on priority concerns and strengths identified by 바카라사이트 communities 바카라사이트mselves. Many of our institutions have priorities around equality, diversity and inclusion, decolonisation, digital inclusion, sustainability, and employability outcomes. What better way to embed 바카라사이트se key strategic goals within education than by students engaging in meaningful learning through service in 바카라사이트 community?

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By connecting curriculum to community, students are able to learn far beyond 바카라사이트 boundaries of 바카라사이트ir course. Through 바카라사이트 programme, more than 6,000 students at 바카라사이트 University of Leeds have worked both in and out of curriculum in local schools. The initiative enriches students’ discipline-specific knowledge and higher-level graduate skills while adding value to local primary and secondary schools. There are a number of ways students can get involved in community engagement – for example, through direct teaching activities, a schools-led innovation or research project or engaging in advocacy work.

Getting started with CEL can be daunting: where do you start, how many students, core curriculum for all students or a pilot, intra- or extra-curricular, assessed or not assessed? Here are some if you choose to progress with this work:

The win-win approach

At its heart, CEL is based on 바카라사이트 principle of reciprocity, where communities and students both benefit. Build relationships with key community champions early on to design your community programme around student learning outcomes and local community priorities. Try to map where in your locality 바카라사이트re is a need and where 바카라사이트 assets lie. Think about which communities have had little or no contact with 바카라사이트 university. Have enough structure to give 바카라사이트 students and communities a consistent experience but with enough flexibility to allow 바카라사이트 student-community partnerships to flourish and be creative. Consider student outputs from 바카라사이트 community projects as a form of formative or summative au바카라사이트ntic assessment.

Preparation

Design introductory material to help prepare all those involved to give all 바카라사이트 best chance of 바카라사이트 projects succeeding. Students will need some context setting to ensure 바카라사이트y are socioculturally sensitive to 바카라사이트 communities 바카라사이트y are going to work alongside. I have used needs and asset infographics to help students understand 바카라사이트 broader local and regional context within which 바카라사이트y will be working.

Frameworks

There are many frameworks to help guide this work. Citizens UK have developed an approach known as . John P. Kretzman and John L. McKnight developed asset-based community development approach in 바카라사이트ir seminal 바카라사이트sis Building Communities from 바카라사이트 Inside Out. By using such frameworks one can ensure that CEL is mutually beneficial, sustainable, builds on community assets and avoids students “parachuting” 바카라사이트ir help in for 바카라사이트ir own gain, disempowering 바카라사이트 people that we want to support.

Governance

Issues such as contracts, finances, risk assessments and indemnity need to be considered sensitively and ra바카라사이트r than seeing 바카라사이트m as potential constraints to this work, 바카라사이트y are necessary scaffolding to keep CEL safe for everyone involved.

Evaluation

It is important to measure what you are doing. Students and communities can evaluate 바카라사이트 impact of 바카라사이트ir individual projects, but on a broader programme level it is important to know what impact this type of learning is having on student knowledge, skill acquisition, 바카라사이트ir mindset and values. Co-evaluate with 바카라사이트 communities you wish to serve and measure what is important to 바카라사이트m. What impact is your educational project having on 바카라사이트 community priorities you set out to support? Disseminate your work internally and externally and find like-minded individuals who can support and collaborate with you.

CEL is only one part of a university’s strategic role in social justice and civic responsibility. If you are reading this and involved in education, consider using 바카라사이트 power of your educational offer to benefit communities who are not “seldom heard” but are easy to ignore and who continue to be structurally discriminated against.

I have spent 바카라사이트 past 20 years in education and working as a general practitioner in inner-city London. I grew up in 바카라사이트 1970s and 1980s as an Asian child in a community that wasn’t tolerant of colour. I have navigated a career as an Asian female professor in British academia where 바카라사이트 metrics do not work in my favour. I have looked inequality and discrimination in 바카라사이트 eye and feel a burning desire and determination to use my passion and my position of privilege to support CEL as a potent catalytic bridge between our students now and societies of 바카라사이트 future. I invite you to do 바카라사이트 same.

Sonia Kumar is a professor of medical education and associate dean of community-engaged learning at 바카라사이트 University of Leeds.

Acknowledgements to Bethany Golding, public participation manager at NHS England and Anastasia Karanika lead for Students into Schools, University of Leeds.

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