Tenure and promotion
decisions are based on an assessment of teaching,
research and outreach accomplishments. Evaluation
decisions reflect not only what faculty do, but
also, how well they do it. Scholarship is fundamental
to the role of university faculty. Service-learning
can take valuable time from scholarly activities,
or it can be used to advance scholarship and enhance
academic contributions.
Principles
for Integrating Service-Learning with Scholarship
Structure service-learning
activities to address larger questions related
to instructional effectiveness and/or appropriate
outreach models for specific populations
Measure the effectiveness
of service-learning and discuss the results
in the contact of a broader subject matter
Measure the effectiveness
of service-learning and discuss the results
in the contact of a broader subject matter
How to Increase
Visibility of Your Effort
Present professional
papers at state, regional, and national meetings.
Publish your findings
in higher education publications or in applied
academic journals, particularly those that report
teaching innovations.
Serve the university
community by volunteering to lead discussions
or giving presentations to campus-wide audiences.
Make your work visible
and emphasize quality: your service-learning
efforts may lead to nominations for college
or university teaching awards as well as other
forms of recognition
Submit grants for
external funding related to service-learning
activities
Seek publicity for
you and your students efforts throughout the
University Public Information Office (Contact
the Public Information Office at 650-3350 early
in the quarter to invite media coverage of the
significant events that link your course to
the community.
Suggestions
for Receiving Departmental Support
Do integrate service-learning
with teaching goals and department, college,
and university prioritie
Don't view
service-learning as an extra activity
Do document the impact
and outcomes of service-learning activities
on student learning and community intervention
Don't emphasize the
effectiveness of service-learning by describing
only the activit
Do use service-learning
as a tool to refine and expand your instructional
skills
Don't separate service-learning
form teaching goals as stated in annual faculty
evaluations
Do discuss your teaching
successes and challenges with departmental colleagues,
soliciting their input and taking the opportunity
to discuss pedagogical issues
Don't keep your service-learning
activities a secret in your department
Do experiment with
different models and approaches, carefully assessing
the effectiveness of each, be innovative
Borrowed with permission
from the Service Integration Project of Colorado
State University
