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International Service Learning

What are “Service Learning” and "International Service Learning"?

“Service Learning” (SL) is an educational methodology that combines academic study of a particular social issue (e.g. development, human rights, education, health, or the environment) with active involvement with local community organizations seeking to resolve such problems or issues.  These credit-bearing courses are experiential in nature, and seek to enhance classroom learning through practical, hands-on participation and personal interaction.

“International Service Learning” (ISL) is the application of this methodology in foreign or overseas contexts.  ISL links elements of traditional study abroad programs with an emphasis on community-based service as a means of engaging students directly with the communities in which they live, study, and volunteer.  These programs are designed to heighten students’ understanding and awareness of global issues, while fostering cross-cultural competencies through direct collaboration and exchange.

A well-designed ISL course follows a three-part structure.
1. A mandatory pre-departure course, taken prior to the on-site service component, gives students the necessary introduction to the course topic, the nature of their service, as well as relevant information on the social, cultural, and historical realities of the host community.  This preparation is essential groundwork for a successful in-country experience. 
2. The in-country service placement or fieldwork, which is supplemented by regular reading, group discussions, and guided reflection, takes place over the course of two to eight weeks. 
3. A reentry module is completed upon return from the in-country component, designed for returned participants to further reflect on their experiences, critically assess the results of their efforts, and begin to integrate the experience into their lives at home. 

Throughout all three of these phases, reflection plays an integral role in the educational process.  It serves as a pedagogical tool to aid and assess student learning, while also providing students with a means of grappling with the complex issues and questions that arise from their service.  This process, which can take the form of guided group discussions, journaling, presentations, or informal conversations, is the primary means of assessment in ISL programs; rather than simply testing knowledge, it allows students to engage deeply with their own personal insights and challenges, and to help make sense out of the typically intense and sometimes disorienting experience that they encounter during an ISL program.