'THE PATH LESS TAKEN': DESIGNING, IMPLEMENTING, AND EVALUATING A SERVICE-LEARNING COURSE FOR ENGINEERING COLLEGE STUDENTS IN LIBYA

Hameda Suwaed

Abstract


This research paper describes the theoretical and pedagogical back­ground and results of the trial of implementing a service-learning course for 18 engineering students at a public Libyan engineering college. This study fills a gap in the literature related to service-learning practice and outcomes in Libya and the Arab world in general. The results of the study, based on student reflection journals, focus groups, and final course outcomes, showed that students reported academic gains in terms of improving their academic and social skills. They also report feeling empowered personally, engaged socially, and having a stronger sense of civic engagement. The initial results of the course are promising, and an expansion of it combined with a long-term study will continue in future semesters. 

 

Article visualizations:

Hit counter

DOI

Keywords


service learning, academic skills, social skills

References


Albarwni, T. Almekhlafi, A. & Nagaratnam, R. (2013) Service-Learning Might be the Key: Learning from the Challenges and Implementation Strategies in EFL Teacher Education in Oman. International Journal of Instruction vol.6: NO.2

Billig, S. H. (2000). Research on K-12 school-based service-learning: The evi¬dence builds. The Phi Delta Kappan, 81(9), 658–664.

Billig, S., Root, S., & Jesse, D. (2005). The impact of participation in ser¬vice-learning on high school students’ civic engagement. Denver, CO: CIRCLE: The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Civic Enterprises. (2008). Engaged for success: Service-learning as a tool for high school dropout prevention. Washington, DC: Author.

Conway, J. W., Amel, E. L., & Gerwien, D. P. (2009). Teaching and learning in the social context: A meta-analysis of service learning’s effects on aca¬demic, personal, social, and citizenship outcomes. Teaching of Psychology, 36, 233–245.

Dewey, J. (1930). Democracy and education. New York, NY: Macmillan.

Esposito (2015)

Kandil, A. (2004). Civic service in the Arab region. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 33, 39S–50S.

Koliba, C. J. (2000). Moral language and networks of engagement: Service learning and civic education. American Behavioral Scientist, 43, 825–838.

Koliba, C. J., Campbell, E. K., & Shapiro, C. (2006). The practice of service learning in local school-community contexts. Educational Policy, 20, 683–717.

Lindsey, U. (2011, April 4). Higher education’s reform takes center stage in Arab protests. Retrieved from Chronicle of Higher Education:

http://chronicle.com/article/Higher-Education-Reform-Takes/127164

Learn and Serve Clearinghouse (2010). http://www.servicelearning.org

Seilstad, B. (2014) Designing, Implementing, and Evaluating a Department-Wide Service-Learning Program for English Language Learners in Morocco. Journal of higher education outreach and engagement. 18(1):229-264

Suwaed, H. and Rohouma, W. (2015) a New Vision of Professional Development for University Teachers in Libya: ‘It’s not an Event, it is Process’ Universal Journal of Educational Research. 3(10): 691-696.

Wessells, M. and C. Monteiro (2001) ‘Psychosocial interventions and post-war reconstruction in Angola: interweaving Western and traditional approaches’, in Daniel Christie, Richard V. Wagner, and Deborah Winter (eds.) Peace, Conflict, and Violence: Peace Psychology for the 21stCentury, Upper Saddle River,

NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Youth Service California. (2006). The seven elements of high-quality ser¬vice-learning. Retrieved from http://kernserve.org/wp-files/kernserve. org//2010/09/The-Seven-Elements-of-SL.pdf




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejes.v0i0.1148

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2018 Hameda Suwaed

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright © 2015-2023. European Journal of Education Studies (ISSN 2501 - 1111) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms. All authors who send their manuscripts to this journal and whose articles are published on this journal retain full copyright of their articles. All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).