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    39 views14 pages

    Collier Learning Through Service Chapter 6

    Uploaded by

    Grace Minerva Dirige
    It's a paper presented within a book, Collier wrote this and titled it "Learning Through Service"

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 14
    CHAPTER Reflection in Action The Learning-Doing Relationship PETER J. COLLIER AND DILAFRUZ R.- WILLIAMS —_—_—_— Thave realized that itis often difficult for people 10 plain why shey Believe a cerain way What 1 ‘have been forced to doin the writing asignments i juan thas This proces of writing down my viet vend pasterns of inking took nearly every drop of energy I ad. ——— re PRECEDING CHAPTERS, we have encouraged you to.completea variety of reflection exrcset 0” 3 renge of topies from “What Is Citizenship®” to “Hove ‘Rest in Groups? What, exactly, ir the process of reflec- ‘don? How ean you as a student train yourself to reflect it deeper and deeper levels in order to maximize Your Ieaening and the ways that your Farming, can inforen and impact you life? Several service-learning researchers (www compact orglisciplines/iecion/index- bre; Eyler, Giles See sede 1996) have identified the characteristics of successful reffection: + Continuous: Reflection must take place be- fore, during, and after the completion of the service project to be fully useful + Challenging: Effective reflection involves pushing ourselves out of our comfort zones 4¢ vake new connections berween conceprs and to think in new ways « Connected: Successful reflection can serve a5 a bridge beeween the service experience and ‘our diseipine-based academic knowledge + Gontextalized: Effective reflection is framed java manner that is appropriate for the context in which the service experience takes place. ‘We've designed the activities in this book to engage you in teBection that is continuous, challenging, seed, and contextualized. Yn tis chapter, we'll take Tower look at the process of reflection and the neces sary components of deep reflection Why Refle ‘Why is there so much emphasis on tfletion in service: Teaming classe? Reflection serves as a bridge for the ‘back-and-forth connecting between what you asa str ddent lear in class and what you are experiencing in ee Jommunity, Reflection, within the context of 2 fervice learning cass, helps you integrate what you Teve been absorbing through the course content with the community external to the college campus. TEneaing in reflective pracrice has been finked ko “other benefits for students. Mabry (1998) found that, for atudencs in ewenty-three different service-learning, course, those who participated in refleetion exercises coribaned mote learning, tothe service experience than 83 84 seudents who participated in the service project but not in flection exercises. Eyler and Giles (1999) also noted the positive impact tht reflection had on academic 6 fcomes for college students, Furthermore, researchers feve found that writcen reflection about emotional ‘events can serve to reduce anxiety and depression (Pen- tnchaker, 1990; Bringle 8¢ Hatches, 1999). In an exper- imental study in which students wrote for four Consecutive days on either traumatic events or superfi- ial topics, Pennebaker, Kivcolt-Glaser, and Glaser (1998) found that students who engaged in reflection fon traumatic life events had more favorable immune system responses es frequent health center visits, and higher reports of subjective well-being. These fe: searchers found that the most important factor that dis- tinguished persons showing health improvement from those who did not was a greater ability to include causal thinking, insights, and selEreflection in their stories “Taken together, research studies suggest that activities that promote petsonally and academically scaningful teflection on service-learning experiences may result in ‘both ineellectual and health-related benef. Connecting Reflection to Service-Learning Paychologist Irwin Altman (1996) identified dhe dis- tinct kinds of knowledge: content knotoledge, which Javolves the rote learning of facts (for example, thatthe ape ofthe state of Oregon is Salem) proces none sedge, o: skills thac involve lentning how to do some; thing (like how to search a library database); and socially relevant knowledge, which connects one's Pet Sonal perspective with, content within particular social Contexts (for example, how to effect social change through activism). Traditional teaching methods eypi tally produce content and, sometimes, process know telge, Service learning, however, involves a kind of teaching and learning that promote both content and process knovledge, a6 well as developing socially rele~ pnt knowledge in students. The key to making this happen is reflection. —_ eee Tavas extremely myopic prior t0 this class, Thad no concept of any of the issues facing today educator ‘Now [fel informed and knowledgeable and I be- Iieve thas thee ARE some coneribosions Team make LEARNING THROUGH SERVING to society Throw that my work asa teacher is ot tly educate the particular clas that am work- ing with at any given sime, bus to model excite ‘mont about learning and a real passion to be of we in the world, a Building upon ideas originally developed by the pragmarist philosopher John Dewey (1933), within the context of service-leaining classes we define “re- fection” as “a persoris intentional and systematic con sideration of an experience, along with how that petson and others are connected to that experience, Framed in terms of particular course content and leaming objectives.” Successful. service-learning in- volves rellection—again, an “intentional and system= tic consideration of an experience”—before, duzing, nd afier the actual service experience, Toole and Toole (2001) posited reflection as being 2 central fea- sure of the Service-Learning Cycle. As you tead about the stages ofthis cycle, think about how your service- learning experience and the reflection you have done throughout the experience fits into these stages. You night thumb through the previous chaprers of this hook to match the exercises you've already completed to the stages. Figure 6.1 illustrates the stages. Pre-Service Reflection: Reflection plays a ctitical role in the initial steps of a service-learning project. ‘Already, you have engaged in reflection on your own {and possibly as part of @ group) as you identified your service-learning experience and planned for its accomplishment. 1. Identifying a project: You completed reflee- tion exercises to inerease awareness of impor: ant community issues in order to provide a useful frame for determining which commu- nity concer you would focus on and which specific project you would undertake. 2. Planning and preparation: You completed reflection exercises to try to imagine all the potential problems dat could arise with the project as well 2s possible solutions to each problem that cduld serve as contingency plans for dealing with unexpected issues re- lated to the project, thus aiding you in the planning and preparation processes. REFLECTION IN ACTION 7. New application He 6. New understandifg Post-Service Reflection 5. Analysis \ Reflection during \e 4, Observation Figure 6.1. Reflect From Tole & Toole (2001) Reflection during Service: Reflection will continue to be crucial for the success of your service-learning experience: 3, Meaningful Service Experiences: You will have opportunities for seflecting on bow to connect course concepts and academic disci- pline knowledge with the service experience, along wich your own personal reactions and insights. 4, Observation: During and immediately after the service experience, you. will be guided to describe the project in its social context, as ‘wall as your personal reaction to being part of the service experience. 5. Analysis: Additional refeccion assignments ww help you go beyond description and reac- and the Service-Learning Cycle / 1. Identitfying project = \ Pre-Service Reflection 2, Planning & preparation Y —_ 3. Meaningful service experience tion, to applying academic knowledge and course concepts as a means of better under- standing the service experience. Post-Service Reflection: Reflection will help you fur ther your analysis of the current situation and make larger assessments of what you have accomplished. 6. New Understanding: You will complete re- flection exercises that promote an increased sense of selEawareness about how your under- standing of community issues has broadened and deepened asa result of the service-learning hss. 7. New Application: Reflection exercises will ‘encourage you to assess and evaluate the ac complishment of your learning and serving goals and to review the lestons of your ser Vice experience with a “bird's-eye view" per~ spective, These then will lead you to the intfication of issues and/or social contexts where the lessons of your current service learning experience can be applied to other community engagements to produce positive results Models of Reflection ‘As we noted earlier, reflection is the means by which your service experience is inked to learning and learn Jog is manifested as meaning, John Dewey was one of the first thinkers to recognize the important role that reflection plays in learning, Devey argued that reflec tion, or reflective thinking, is the key to whether any txperience is “educative,” meaning that it involves leatning (1953). Reflection connects the world of ob- gervations and facts with the world of ideas. For Dewey, reflective thinking is what moves a person from mindlessly drifting through life to connecting the current situation with past experiences and know!- Converger Figure 6.2. Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model ‘Adapted from Kolb (1984) Experiential Experiential Learning. LEARNING THROUGH SERVING edge as a means of achieving a desced goal. That goat nay be as fandamencal as trying to make a more in- formed decision about whether and how to best offer your services to communities in the fucure Reflection, for Dewey, goes beyond experience. He hrefieved that to really understand an experience, itis imperative ro understand how you were connected to or affected by it. AS you reflect upon your service- learning experiences, it is important chat you place yourselFin the middle of the process of connecting the “Tirrent situation with past experiences and knowledge as ameans of achieving 2 desired goal. Kolb (1984) built upon the foundation of Dewey's work on reflective thought in developing the Experien- Vial Learning Model (gute 6.2). Experience is the cor erstone of this model, and learning is viewed 2s a process by which knowledge is created chrough the transformation of experience. Kolb developed a cyeti cal model of experiential learning that involves a re- peated pattern of “grasping” or comprehending an Experience followed by “transforming” that experience into knowledge, This model provides us with a concep tual framework for understanding the organic process oflearning through serving. 2ADaoU Assimilator vorenissqO ur eng her acd op his thi foil of REFLECTION IN ACTION “The stages of Kolb's Experiential Learning Model ‘ean be explained using the example of Tina, @ student engaging in a hunger awareness publicity campaign at het local food bank. As'Tina first begins to spend time ‘a the food bank, she realizes that this service exper ance is different and distinct from other school or cvetyday occurrences. In what Kolb calls the concrete experience sage ofthe model, Tina comprehends that this is something fundamentally different from any- thing she has ever experienced before. 1f we were to read Tina’ journal, she might write an entry like the following: Triever imagined I could have an experience like this as part of a clas. My time working at the food bank is drastically different from writing a term paper in another class or even just watching people shop at che food bank on the weekend Next, Tina enters the reflective observation stage “ofthe model, a she begins to reflect upon her personal reactions to the concrete service experience. Tm getting more used to ir now, but sometimes teorking as the food bank and seeing s0 many people come in day after day after day-—many of vobom look a whole lot like me and my friends and family—is pretty overwhelming. I aluays ccowmned that people who didn's bave enough vo cat simply werent working hard enough carn a living or were spending their money ste pid, Tha just does’ seem to fit he people Tim meeting, ‘The initial observation and description of the service experience has now been transformed into something thee is personally relevant through the intentional process of reflection. “in the third stage of the modsl, abstract comeeprt- alization, Tina ties in course-telated and other previ- Souuly acquired knowledge and theories to redesct the service experience from a conceptual rather than a descriptive perspective. Tina might vite, ‘Based on the materials we studied in clas om sovial inequalities and poliscal sues within our sate ny service experience at the food bank is more than just afield trip: i san opporttityt0 exam ine firsthand bow what appears to be an individ sual social issue—for example, bunger—is really the result of socital-level structural inequalities ‘T sbink that individual people going hungry i ry vase is connecied to political decisions that Thave adversely affected independent farmers in our region frankly I never understood or really cared about shat before. Finally, during the active experimentation sc ‘Tina uses her new understanding of the service exper ‘ence developed during the abstract conceptualization Srage 1 stimulate an application of her ‘new under tonding of this situation within the context of set of options for her personal choices in the world plunger in ovr sais better understood as being caused by societal, rather than individual-level acrrs, can this same pespcsie provide me with “nights into understanding other problems, suck ae homelessness and illiteracy? What are the com- vnections between sese isues? Flow might I make sense of these shings 100? “This experimentation in new setings eads the studene back to the beginning of the model—a new concrete experience—and the cycle begins again "The different aspects of the learning process that snake up the four stages of Kolb’s model have also been Tinked to four different learning styles. Each learning style is defined by the stages of the learning process that iiamediately precede and follow it, and each represents aa different set of skills that a student may acquire Refore we go on, lees take a minute and revisic the «Marshmallows and Spaghetti” exercise from chapter 4 (exercise 4.3, on page 47). As you recall in this exer~ ise each group received a package of spaghetti and a tag of marshmallows. The goat of the exercise was for the pioup to build the rallest rower possible our ofthe maxhmallows and spaghetti. Now we will ilustrate the differcnt learning styles associated with Kolb’s nodal by linking them to the different roles team tnembers may have played in the exercise. (IF you Hadn't complete this exercise, try to imagine what type of learning style most resembles yours.) ‘Diverger: Kolb describes this learning style as em- phasing concrete experience and reflective observation AN diverger' strengths include imaginative abilry and “mwareness of the meaning ofa situation. A. diverger is Capable of viewing 2 problem from 2 varity of pet 87 LEARNING THROUGH SERVING ‘#e Exercise 6.1: Reflecting on Community Partnerships Using Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model “The following reflection exercise uses the stages of Kolb’s Model co frame your service learning ‘experience and help you better understand your interactions with your community partnes Concrete Experiences Typically, in service-learning clases, the kinds of community partnes- ships that you experience will involve rulkple consticxencies—your university local govern- ment and nonprofit agencies, citizen groups, and students. First, chink about a situation from your curtent service-learning class involving other “players” from your community pattactsip. Nex, describe an inceraction berween yourself and at lease one other player From hat partnership. As you describe the interaction, make sure co include what you ob- served, what you and others said, and any nonverbal behaviots that you noted. Try to reserve judgment and be as neutral in your description as possible. Reflective Observation: How do you feel when you reflece upon the interaction you de~ scribed? Did the interaction turn out the way you expected it co? If nos, what was differ ene What do you think the community partner expected from the interaction? Reflect ‘upon the assumptions you brought with you about the other people in cis relationship before this interaction occurred. What assumprions do you think che community partner had about you? Abstract Conceptualization: Using materials from this service-learning course and know! ‘edge gained from your academic major, how would you explain the nature ofthis community partnership? What concepts or theoretical models might help explain both the outcomes of this interaction, as well as the underlying processes? Specifically consider the following: + What influence does culture have on this interaction? + What influence does power have on this interaction? + How does your understanding of service impact this interaction? Active Experimentation: Hove have your plans for relating co furure community partners ‘hanged asthe reule of your carent sevice leaning experience? Has che experience changed your personal understanding of “service” TF so, how? How will our current understanding of aetture” and “power” impact your interactions wich community partners in the furure What would you do differently next time? lows with more vertical pices of spaghetti that finally sonal perspectives and then organizing these multiple reach a point. Divergers tend to excel in situations that L views into a meaningful description of what's going fon. Tn the exercise, a student who favors 2 diverger learning style might be very active early in the process, coming up with multiple ways that the team could ap- proach the problem—for example, the team could stack marshmallows on top of each other like a tower, or it could connect pairs of marshmallows like tinker toys using a piece of spaghetti or ic could build a pyra- iid by constructing a wide base of marshmallows sup- porting vertical pieces of spaghetti that would the support a smaller second story platform of marshmal ‘all for brainstorming and the development ofalterna- tive ideas and strategies. Divergers possess good data gathering skills, tend to be sensitive, and ae interested in people. Assimilator: The emphasis in this learning styles on reflective observation and. abssractconceptualization, An assimilator is very comfortable using inductive logic, in ‘which one works from observations to make theory. In the exercise, a student who favors an assimilater earn ing style might take a more active role in determining REFLECTION IN ACTION which of the various alternatives makes the most sense for the group to pursue. For example, after comparing the different possibilities from a theoretical design per- spective, the assimilacor might declare thatthe pyramid structure isthe most architecturally sound and therefore should provide the veam with the best chance of ereat~ ing the tallest structure, Assimilators are particularly valuable in situations that call for the development and creation of theoretical models. Assimilators tend to be more interested in ideas for their own sake than the ap- plication of those ideas to practical situations. Converger: The emphasis in this learning style is con abstract conceptualization and active experinsenta- tion, A converger’s strengths include the abilities to problem-solve and make decisions and the willing- ness to search for the practical uses of ideas and theo- ries. In the exercise, a student who favors a converger learning style might focus on the question, “What is the best way to put a pyramid together?” and would be actively involved in construction decisions with the project. The converger will wonder if it will pro- vide more suppott to use two pieces of spaghetti rather than one to connect the marshmallows on the larger base level to the marshmallows on the smaller second story. A student favoring this learning style tends co perform wel in situations where there is single correct answer and the group task isto identify che “best” solu- tion for a particular problem. Convergers are comfort- able using deductive logic, in which they use theory to explain real-life occurrences; they: prefer dealing with technical tasks and problems rather than social or inter- petsonal issues. ‘Accommodator: The emphasis in this learning style is on active experimentation and concrete experience, An accommodator’s strengths lic in doing things, carrying ut plans, and getting involved in new experiences. A student favoring this learning style will do wel in sit- uations that require a willingness to adapt to circum- stances in order to successfully complete a task. In the cexeicise, a student who favors an accommodator Yearn- ing style might become active only ata late stage of the actual building process as the exercise time limit is ap- proaching and the team is struggling to make the pyra- mid design stay together. The accommodator might help modify the pyramid by putting in additional sta bility supports to prop up the structure so that, while ic no longer looks like a pyramid, ie is Fairy tall and stays together until the assignment is “judged” by the instructor. Accommodators learn best fiom hands-on experiences. These individuals are pragmatists—con cemed with what works—and are willing to throw away a theory if means a better way can be found to address a problem. Accommodators tend to rely on people much more than on analysis, but are sometimes perceived by others as pushy because of their focus on getting things done. ‘We should note that, while Kolb recognizes that in- dividuals typically prefer one learning style over others, he also proposes that, to achieve real learning, students should develop some competence with all four styles. In ‘most traditional leaning experiences (such as lecture format classes), students with assimilator and converger learning styles—sryle thac emphasize “thinking” activi- ties—seem to be most comfortable, Interestingly, one of the strengths of service-learning classes is that they pro- vide students preferring accommodator and diverger sryles—styles that emphasize “doing” activities—with a more compatible learning envionment. Kolb main- tains that experiential learning involves both “thinking” and “doing,” and, regardless of where you “start” (in terms of your preferred learning style) and which teach- ing approach is used (such as experiential activities in community collaboration), ic is imperative that you visi all the stages in the eyce in order to fully integrate the learning experience. ___Deep Reflection ‘You may already have had many course experiences in which you have been asked to reflect. Many inscruc- tors assign journals, for example, asa tool for students to record their thoughts and feelings about what they are learning ot to write less formally about vasious suibjects. Effective reflection in service-learning clases, however, needs to go deeper chan most traditional notions of reflection, beyond a surface description to what anthropologists call a “thick” description (Geettz, 1973). Thick descriptions capture the tich- ness of detail in what is observed, as well as the per- sonal connection between the individual and the ‘experience. We propose that deep reflection in service- learning experiences is composed of three compo- nents: observation, personal relevance, and connection. “To practice deep reflection, you will need to pay atten- tion to all three elements; no one component alone ot pair of components is sufficient to connect “thinking” swith “doing” in che service experience. 89 style? In eighteen years of schooling, I have never really questioned events around me, how Ifitin, and bow those events affect the way 1 fit in, until now Now it seems lke that is the major work of this course: 10 ‘make connections, to understand how one thing is related 10 another, and how Iam related ro all oft. ‘The following descriptions offer ideas for how co practice reflection that is deep and thick. The students represented here were part of a service project to weath- crize the homes of low-income and elderly residents. In the quotes that follow the descriptions, listen to how the students have articulated their own deep reflection: Observation: Describe what you experienced: the setting, the community agencies, and the individuals with whom you interacted: First of, [found it weird to winterize atthe begin ning of simmer. Our clas is meeting during the hottest time ofthe da so it ean be prety brutal to be stuck in some attic feeding insulation into the wall, And ie takes a good long while, too. But 1 guess wish 200 homes t0 weatherize a year, she Community Energy Project must spread out the projects shrowghoue the year inorder 10 finish them Yesterday we helped an elderly woman in a trailer park in Northeast. She and a friend of hers went on ‘} Exercise 6.2: What Is Your Preferred Learning Style? “Think about the different experiences you have already had in this service-learning course, such as class exercises, working with community partners, group projects, and the contri- butions that YOU personally made to each ofthese elements. Which of Kolbs four learn- ing styles—diverger, assimilator, converge, accommodator—best describes your preferred “To investigate your preferred syle, choose a specific example ofan element chat you ave used inthis couse, Brely describe the activity or even, and then itemize the ways you par- ticipated in it. Looking back on this experience and the letning styles described above, ‘which learning style did you mos flly work froma? How has your preferred learning sole impacted the collaboration you are pat of inthis lass? What ean you leam from others pre- ferred learning styles eo more fally develop your capacities as a learner and a doer? LEARNING THROUGH SERVING and on abous how fortunate she was to have these services for free and how we were a wonderful gift Personal relevance: Connect the service experiences to your own reactions and responses. How did you feel? Use “I” statements when talking abou your feelings: ‘Te was great for me to see the elderly woman's ap- ipreciation for our team and to have her say such nice things t0 us, I think she appreciated having young people around for a while. I realized that until I volunteered my time with the Community Energy Project, {didn't really have an understand- ing of what it fel: like to make a difference in somebodys life so shat’ good. But to be completely honest, as good as it was t0 have somebody appre ciate our work, I just wanted to get out of there, cool off and take a shower, and get back to my f- amiliar life. I know Tl be ready t0 do some more houses next week, but for now I need some time to think abou things Connection: Frame your observations and pessonal reactions in 2 context provided by relevant course readings, research, or other materials. How does the content of this service-learning class provide an inter- « Practice acute observation, Work to decipher the dues in the world around you. «Figure out what matters mos forthe ask being considered. « Make a conscious effort to focus on the expe rience you're reflecting om. + Permit yourself to fel emotional Go beyond your “self” and your personal per= spective. «ge the lens of your past experiences t0 make Tinks to the present. + Recognize —and think about—the tension perween being attiched and involved and then stepping back co goin a detached perspective ofthe situation. Modes of Reflection _ ‘Now that you have read more about the reasons yout No ed to reflect in service-learning courses and the tape thar you may direct yourclf as 2 Wilectve Tier we offer ideas for different modes of reflec: tion. Your professor may have already selected the ype wee gection activities you will complete. TF not d= case with him of her the various options. The activities may also be used alone as you process your Fearing: LEARNING THROUGH SERVING hrough-serving experience. Figure 63 identifis fout primary modes ofreftecion—tlling, activities multi- Peta and writing —along, with 2 few representative ‘examples of each type. anause each ype of reflection exercise has diferent sxrens, the decision about which mode of efleedon to use should be based on two major factors: «What is the context of your current class? Perhaps your inseuctor has very dsiberately ructured and assigned reflective activities for you and your classraates based on her e& pertise and cxpeience with service earning rears. Even ifthe benefits of completing the seflerive assignment in the way she has indi- fated are not apparent to you, follow het guidelines. In fact you might deepen Your sun reflection on the assignment By investi tating your ideas about why the instructor pore to frame the assignment in the way she ‘id, What impact docs this framing have on yout What did you learn as a resale of come ‘etn this reflection in this way? How might Sou use cis particular reflective assignment fo oaderstand your experience more fully? What Gquesions do you now have asa result of have ing completed this rellection? Examples: sjournals directed writing ~~ Writing Examples: ‘| Examples: soral class g | erole playing resentation 2 e Modes of = | einterviewing eclass reflection = | classmates discussion a | eee ~~ Multimedia Exampl ephoto / video essay *collage Figure 6.3. Modes of Reflection REFLEC ow of yo fo Teli Repe wode cellit hum bene thos her 1 eral stu spe jon ing sea tal ch Ins four ai- ent sion REFLECTION IN ACTION «What is the best means for telling the story of your service experience? Whether or not Sour instructor has assigned reflective activites Tor you and your dassmates, you may choose © practice reflection both formally and infor Frally beyond the scope of those assignments. Tn creating your own reflective opportunities, you may experience greater fieedom in sing yew and different modes of reflection than you have in past courses. Sometimes photos, draw- ing, collages, oF videos may capture che esence “ofa service experience with much greater clat- iy than writton words. Remember, whatever form your service-learning reflection takes, the underlying clements of deep reflection —obser- vation, personal relevance, and. connection — need to be present. ‘Telling Reporting our insights orally to others isa great Way to deepen our understanding of those insights, Story- telling remains one of the most important ways chat Komrine teanemit information to cach other. The onefit of storytelling, however, dontt only apply to thove listening to the storys the teller, too, has his or her understanding enhanced through the act of com- rmunicating it ro others. in a formal way, oral presentations can offer sev" eral advantages in service-learning courses: providing

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