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contribution,todevelopskillsandunderstandingthroughhumanconnectionandtherealisationofourcommonhumanity.

Service Learning: an IntroductionServicelearningisgroundedintheconceptofexperientiallearning,offeringstudentstheopportunitytoapplyclassroomlearningthroughserviceandengagementwithothers.Servicelearningprogramsextendcommunityservicethroughintegrationincurriculumandtherecognitionofdefinedlearningachievements.Itisanapproachthatchallengesstudentsbothpersonallyandacademically,leadingtolife-changingpersonalgrowthanddeeperlearningexperiences.

Studentstodayarelookingtobechallenged,inspiredandtaughtinarelevant,practicalway.Facilitatingtheirlearningthroughpracticalexperiencesrecognisesthis–inplaceofaconceptofeducationinwhich‘studentsaretreatedlikeemptyjarsthatneedtobefilledwithknowledge’(McCarthy,2002).Socialeducationcurriculumprovidesthefoundationfortheoryandreflection,inthattheexperienceandserviceisgroundedinunderstanding.Theprocessbeginsintheclassroom,wheretheoreticalconceptsarelaiddownandtheclearlinksbetweensubjectcontentandassessmentaredefined.Studentengagementandunderstandingisthenenhancedthroughalinkbetweentheclassroomandtheoutsideworld.Studentsbuildupontheirclassroomknowledge

Kate Miller is a social entrepreneur and lawyer, passionate about experiential learning and social justice. Kate has eight years experience in the youth education and community development sectors, including running a vocational training program for young indigenous women and a stint with a leading strategy consulting firm. Kate holds postgraduate and honours degrees in law, and has run education programs throughout Australia, Kenya, Fiji and Timor Leste.

DestinationDreamingisasocialenterprisethatworkswithschoolstocreatesustainablecommunitypartnershipsthatteachyoungpeopleaboutglobalcitizenship,self-awarenessandsocialjustice.DestinationDreamingispassionateaboutusingservicelearningtoengageyoungpeopleandpreparethemtothriveinaglobalworld.Aseducators,westrivetopreparestudentsnotjustfortheiracademiclives,buttodeliverrealexperiencesthatareaboutlifeitself.Intoday’sresults-driven,globalworld,itisimportantthatweprovideexperiencesthatempowerstudentsasleaderswhocandisplayempathy,resilienceandimagination.Weneedtoengagestudentsthroughdifferentmeans,withmorethansimplywordsonapage,andinspirethembeyond‘liking’asocialactiongrouponFacebook.Todevelopinspirationanddeepunderstanding,weneedstudentstofeelthejoyofmeaningful

Creating an Engaging and Relevant ‘Classroom’ that Ignites a Love of Learning:Inspiring, Practical Social Education through Service LearningBy Kate Miller Program Director at Destination Dreaming

TEACHING AND LEARNING

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inaservice-basedplacementthatleadstoanewrangeofexperiences,whicharethenbroughtbackintotheclassroomforreflection.

Lifting Social Education off the Page Usinganexperientialframework,thelearningenvironmentistransformedfromexistingsimplyasapagefromatextbookintoatrulypractical,authenticarena,enablingstudentstoapplyandenhancetheirlearninginthewidercommunity.Ideally,servicelearningisimplementedasanintegratedapproachtoachievingacademicoutcomes,insubjectssuchasGlobalPolitics,SociologyorCivicsandCitizenship.Foreachofthesesubjects,thedrawingondirectexperienceoutsidetheclassroomisaninspiringandeffectivemodelforteaching.Inordertodevelopstudentunderstandingoftheglobalcommunityinwhichwelive,thereisnothinglikegettingoutoftheclassroomandactuallyexperiencingit.

Acommunitypartnershipprovidesafantasticfoundationforteachingsociology,forexample.Studentengagementwithadevelopingcommunityprovidesstudentswithfirst-handinquiryintoissues,suchasaccesstoresources,thesocialconsequencesofchildlabourandcorporatecitizenship.ConnectingwithacommunityinTimorLeste,forexample,canprovideafoundationtoanalysethecomparativeexperienceofbeingayoungpersoninTimor.Itcouldallowstudentstoconsidertheeffectsonyoungpeopleoftheurbandrift,increasinginfluenceofsocialmedia,demographicshiftasaresultoftheIndonesianoccupationandtheeconomicimplicationsofachangeinnationallanguage.

Theexplorationofdifferentfamilyformscanbebroughttolifethroughacross-culturalcommunitypartnership.Byspendingtimeinadiversecommunity,studentscanexplorefirst-handthetraditionalgenderroles,comparedtotheirexperiencesoflifeandthechangingrolesoffamilymembersinAustralia.Forexample,connectingwithacommunityinFijiallowsstudentstoexperiencethedeeproleoftheextendedfamilyandthedefinedbehaviourandresponsibilitiesoffamilymembersinacross-culturalcontext.StudentsinthisprogramdiscusswithFijianpeerstheirexperienceoffamilylife,therolesoffamilymembersandtheinfluenceofeconomics.TheyreflectuponwhyFijianmenhuntpigswhileFijianwomencareforthechildrenandharvestcassava;orexploretheengagementintraditionalcraftsofwomeninruralareasandcomparetheseexperienceswithpeople’slivesinurbanareas.Uponreturntotraditionalclass,studentsprepareareportthatidentifiesthedifferencesandsimilaritiesbetweentheirexperiencesoffamilylifeinAustraliaandtheexperiencesoftheirnewfriendsinFiji.Theyreflectupontheimplicationsoffamilylifewithoutelectricity,theconceptofWesternmaterialismandhowasubsistencelifestyleaffectstherolesoffamilymembersinFijiascomparedtoAustralia.

AservicelearningprogramleadstovaluableexperienceswithwhichtodiscussethicalissuesinAustralianandGlobalPolitics.Doescharitystartathomeordowehavearesponsibilitytoforeigncommunities?Byconnectingwithacommunitypartnerthattackleshomelessness,studentscoulddeveloparealawarenessandempathyfortheconceptoftherighttohousing.Theycouldgainapracticalunderstanding

ofactivecitizenshipandthepositivechangetheycanmakethroughinvolvementinsocialmovements.Suchaprogramwouldgroundconsiderationsoftheeconomicimplicationsofhomelessnessandthecomplexityandrangeofsolutionsbeingrolledouttoalleviatepoverty.Groundedbythisexperience,studentscouldthenconsiderargumentsaboutourassistancetointernationalcommunitiesovertheinvestmentinlocalsolutions.

Toprepareyoungpeopleforadulthood,weneedtoprovidechallengingopportunitiesforstudentstonegotiatetheirownlearningthroughauthenticworldexperiences.Throughaservicelearningprogramwithapartnerinadevelopingcommunity,studentscanbeexposedtopovertyandtheexperienceoflivingwithoutelectricityorrunningwater.Theycanengagewithdiverseconceptsofcommunityandfamilyandseetheworkofaninternationalnon-governmentalorganisationontheground.Suchexperiencesnotonlytransformpedagogyfrombeingonly‘wordsonapage’,butalsochallengestudentstothinkmorereflectivelyaboutatopic.Bybuildinginexperientialandservicelearning,studentsgainexperienceindecision-makingandtheprocessofacceptingresponsibilityforone’sdecisions.Itisonethingtocritiquetheeffectivenessofaglobalactoronpaper…itbecomesawholeotherballgamewhenstudentshavelivedinthecommunitytheactorisworkingtodevelop,builtfriendshipswithandlistenedtothestoriesoftheirpeersanddevelopedanawarenessoftheculturalandsustainabilitychallengestodevelopmentandtheuniversalityofhumanrights.

Byengagingwithadevelopingcommunityonacollaborativeproject,studentscangainanappreciationofthelocalpeople’sdesireforeconomicdevelopment,incontrasttoanenvironmentalgroup’sconcernaboutresultingenvironmentaldegradation.Supportedbythisperspective,studentscandiscussandevaluatetheresponseofglobalenvironmentgroupsandtheeconomicanddevelopmentalchallengestothecommunity’sattainmentofbasichumanrights.Byengagingwithacommunityexperiencingpoverty,studentslearntoseebeyondtheperspectivepresentedbyoneactor–studentsconsiderconceptsofbothsocialandenvironmentalsustainabilityandhow theymaymakeaninformedcontributiontosocialmovements.

Engaging Students Through Service LearningByincorporatingservicelearningintothecurriculum,teachersareadoptinganapproachthatcanachievesignificantoutcomesforallstudentsintheirclass,aswellastheircommunity.Servicelearningisextremelyvaluableforstudentsforwhomtraditionalclassroomlearningisachallenge,orformotivatingstudentswhohavebecomedisengaged.Itprovidesanopportunityforallstudentstoexperiencesuccessandprovidesarelevantcontextinwhichstudentscantransferacademicconceptstoauthentic‘outsideworld’environments.Throughthoughtfullyfacilitatedactivities,studentsarelikelytoexperiencealesscomplicatedrelationshipbetweenrewardandeffort–iftheyworkhardtocartrockstothebuildingsite,orspendaseriesofsessionsconversingpatientlyinEnglishwithanewlysettledrefugee–theirobjectivewilleventuallyberealised.Theyarerewardedfortheirhardworkand

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participation,andthisoftenleadstoablossomingawarenessthatistransferableupontheirreturntotheclassroom.

Servicelearningenhancesopportunitiesforengagementbydeliveringpractical,relevantskills.Togiveourclassespurposeandmeaning,wecanutiliseprogramsofexperientialandservicelearning.Studentsmayappearunmotivatedbyalearningarea,butitisoftenalackofmotivationtolearninthemannerthetraditionaleducationsystemwants,ratherthanstudentdisinterestinthetopic.Asimplebutrevealingexampleisofferedby‘Peter’,aYear11student,whowasdisinterestedinmathematicsclassuntilhelabouredbesidelocalcarpentersonadevelopmentprojectinTimorandexperiencedtherelevanceofmathematics skills in practice.

Improving Academic AchievementResearchshowsthatimprovedacademicachievementresultsfromcarefullydesignedservicelearningthatisintegratedwithinthecurriculum.Anexampleofthisintegrationisprovidedbythecollaborativedeliveryofacommunityprojectinpartnershipwithalocalasylumseekerresourcecentre.Studentsareinvolvedinprovidinglanguagetutoring,inthecontextofexploringtheexperienceofdiversecommunities,themeaningsofcultureandexperiencesofethnicity.Oftenthestudent-tutorwilllearnasmuchas,ifnotmorethan,thepersonbeingtutored.Experientiallearningofthiskindoftenleadstogreaterstudentachievementinthecontentarea,astheknowledgeandskillareasareintegratedintotheexperience.Theacademicachievementisaresultofenhancedopportunitiesforpracticalexploration,discussionandengagementintheprocessofstrivingforunderstanding.(RMCResearchCorporation,2007).

Service Learning and VELS Physical, Personal & Social Strand Servicelearningneednotonlybelinkedtodiscipline-basedlearning,butalsotointerdisciplinaryareasintheVELSPhysical,PersonalandSocialStrandsuchasCivicsandCitizenship,HealthandPersonalLearning.Throughastrongfoundationofcommunityengagement,servicelearningallowsadeepexplorationofCivicsandCitizenship.Forexample,DestinationDreamingrecentlypartneredaTasmanianschoolwitharemoteschoolinTimorLeste.Studentswereintroducedtotheconceptsofethicalpartnershipsandcommunityintheclassroom,beforevisitingtheirpartnercommunityandengaginginatutoringproject.Here,studentsgainedanexperientialunderstandingofthevaryingdynamicbetweentheAustralianandTimorLestegovernmentsbyexploringtheCRAVmuseum.Theyfurtherdevelopedtheirunderstandingofcontemporaryissuesbyhearingfromlocalyoungpeoplewhohavelostentirefamiliesintheirstruggleforindependence.

Throughregularreflectionontheirexperiencesinacommunityofdiversefamilycontexts,historicalexperienceandaccesstohumanrights,studentsgeneratequestionsandexploreperspectives.Theyengagewithoneanotherastheyprocesscomplexinformationandchallengingexperiences,acknowledgeoneanother’sperspectivesanddiscussconceptsofdevelopmentandourresponsibilitiesasglobalcitizens.Studentsaregivenresponsibilityfortheoutcomesoftheprogram,fromdesigninglessonplansandfundraisingforadditionalresourcestofacilitatingthetutoringsessions.Eachday,asstudentsengagewiththeirpeersinthedeliveryoftheprogram,theyinquireintoandreflectupontheexperiencesoftheirnewfriendsinTimor,theresponseofglobalactorsandthepotentialforsocialaction.

Timor-Leste. Photo courtesy of Destination Dreaning

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relationshipbeyondthatof‘funder/donor’and‘recipient’–withoneschoolsimplyfundraisingandsendingdonationstotheirpartnercommunity.Yourpartnershipshouldbebasedonmutualrespect,equalityanddetailopportunitiesforbothpartnerstomakeanequalcontribution.Thisprovidesafantasticopportunityforteacherstohelpstudentsseebeyondnarrowviewsabout‘richandpoor’;torecognisethat‘richindollars’doesn’tnecessarilyequateto‘richinlife’,andthatapartnerthatmaylackfinancialresourceshasequallyvaluablelessonstooffer.Thevalueinapartnershipisinthehumancontact,thediscussionsbetweenpeersandtheculturalexchange,ratherthantheprovisionofmonetarygifts.

Theserviceprojectitselfshouldbecollaborative,sustainableandbuildcapacityinbothcommunities.Ifyourpartnershipinvolvesthedeliveryofacommunitydevelopmentproject,youmustalwaysensureitisbasedontheneedsofthelocalcommunity–notthewishesorcapacityofthevisitingstudentgroup.Togetherwithyourpartnercommunity,developaclearprojectplanthatincludes:theneedtheprojectisaddressing,projectobjectives,thecontributionstobemadebybothcommunities,managementandoperationalroles,budget,timetable,associatedinvolvementoflocalgovernmentandnon-governmentorganisationsandamethodforevaluation.

Althoughintegratingservicelearninginyourcurriculummaysoundlikeahugejob,thebenefitsgreatlyoutweightimeandresourceinvestment.ResearchfromtheUnitedStates,whereservicelearningispracticedinaboutonethirdofallpublicK-12schools,showedthatservicelearningatmanyschoolsrevivedteachers,inspireddialogueamongstthestaffanddevelopedmorecaringschoolenvironments.Anotherkeybenefitwasthereductioninbehaviouralincidentsinclassroomswherestudentsareengagedinservicelearning(RMCResearchCorporation,2007).

Theservicelearningenvironmentisunique.It’sabouteducationoftheheartaswellasthemind.Itprovidesanopportunitytochallengeone’sself-centrednessandmaterialism,toworktogethertoarrive‘asone’ata‘destination’,tocooperatetolightentheloadanddiscoverthatone’spersonalbestissomuchmorethanperhapswaspreviouslybelieved.DestinationDreaminghopestomeetmanyofyououtthereexploringourglobalcommunity,leadingyourstudentstodiscover,bechallenged,celebratetheirsimilaritiesandtheirdifferences,growingamidstexperiencesthattransformeducationintoajourneyaboutlifeitself.

Forfurtherinformationaboutservicelearningortodiscussaprogramforyourschool,contactKateMillerattheDestinationDreamingon(03)90772207,orvisitwww.destinationdreaming.com.au.

ReferencesMcCarthy,E.(2002)EducatingtheHeart:Service‐LearningandShapingtheWorldWeLiveIn.Tokyo:InternationalChristianUniversity

Holt,J.(1995)HowChildrenLearn,PenguinEducation

RMCResearchCorporation(2007)WhyDistricts,Schools,andClassroomsShouldPracticeService-Learning:http://www.servicelearning.org/instant_info/fact_sheets/k-12_facts/why

Characterdevelopmentoccursasaresultofthepracticalneedtotakeresponsibility,careforoneanother,thinkcreatively,identifythemosteffectivegamesandconstructivelycommunicateinacross-culturalcontext.

Throughtheirservicelearningexperiences,manystudentsdiscovercareerpathsofwhichtheywouldotherwisebeunaware.Oftenthistranslatesintomorevariedorambitiousjobaspirationsandenhancedmotivationforacademicachievement.Onaninternationalcommunityprogram,forexample,studentsmaymeetnursesworkinginruralhealth,aidworkersandteachersworkinginaninternationalschool.Onalocalplacement,studentsmaybeexposedtocareersincommunityagencies,environmentalscienceormedicine,suchasworkinginthefieldofindigenoushealthcare.

Organising Service Learning and Important Principles for Application Servicelearningisbuiltuponthefoundationofacommunityororganisationalpartnership.Thecreationofconstructive,sustainablepartnershipstakesbothtimeandresourcestoensurepositiveoutcomesforbothparties.Itiscriticalthatapartnershipisfoundeduponmutualrespectandtwo-waylearning.Boththeschoolandthecommunitypartnershouldclearlyidentifytheirobjectivesforthepartnershipandhavetwo-waylearningatthefrontoftheirminds.

Whileitmayseemoverlyformal,awritten agreement isimportanttoensureastrongfoundationforyourpartnershipthroughestablishingasharedvisionandgoals.Bothcommunitiesshouldagreeonthetargeteducationalgoals,thecourseofactioninagivenscenario(whatwillhappenifstaffretireormoveon,forexample)andtheirrespectiveresponsibilities.Thisshouldalsobethebasisfordevelopingaframeworkforevaluatingwhetherthepartnershipisworkingforbothcommunities.

Inglobalpartnerships,itiscommonforthetwopartiestohaveverydifferentlevelsoffinancialresources.Itisimportanttoconsidera

Fiji: Photo courtesy of Destination Dreaning