Study Abroad with a Conscience
By Andrea and Richard Kiely
This article was printed in Abroad View Fall 2005
When students return from studying abroad, they typically bring home knowledge of another culture, different perspectives on their home country, new friendships, improved foreign language skills, academic credits, increased confidence and maturity, life-long memories, and a suitcase full of souvenirs. Imagine if you could have a deeper and richer version of the academic, personal, and professional benefits of study abroad, while making a meaningful contribution to your host community. Global service-learning presents such a socially and/or environmentally-conscious alternative to traditional study abroad. It is the substantial service component that enhances both the academic and intercultural opportunities and enables participants to make a difference in the world.
The learning that occurs in global service-learning programs tends to be a profound experience because participants examine real-life problems in real-world settings and make efforts to address issues confronting the local community. There are no “right” answers in the back of the book, but the academic portion of the program provides the necessary background information and theoretical framework to understand community issues and facilitate effective participation in the service project. Participants work collaboratively to grapple with the complexity of real issues, learn to balance competing interests in the community, apply their academic knowledge and skills to address a community need, and critically reflect on the service-learning experience. Success or failure in service-learning has real world implications and is measured in terms of a tangible impact on the community, along with the personal growth and cognitive development reflected in grades and credits. Moreover, active involvement in the service component of the program can have a major impact on participants, transforming their understanding of themselves and the world.
Whether program participants conduct health clinics, complete building or environmental conservation projects, assist local service agencies, develop resources, conduct research, provide training, or raise awareness about community problems, service-learning programs provide unique opportunities for meaningful interaction and direct connections with the local community. The mutually beneficial nature of service-learning projects facilitates dialogue, creates a bond, and builds trust between participants and community members. Similarly meaningful relationships are rarely formed in traditional study abroad programs, where interaction with the local population is often limited to the classroom setting or social gatherings. In effect, service-learning can open the door to the host culture and forge deep personal connections between participants and local people.
Service-learning refers to a specific type of pedagogy and form of research, but the term is often misused. In order to select a quality service-learning program, you should take the time to find out about both the service and academic components of the program. Look for programs in which service is integral and connected to the academic component and in which opportunities for on-going critical reflection and dialogue with community partners, peers, and faculty are built into the program structure. Since reciprocity is a key goal in service-learning, the local community should have significant involvement in the development and implementation of the service-learning program. Community members should therefore play an important role in identifying the problems that service work will address, structuring the program, and assessing the outcomes of service projects. Furthermore, service projects should be sustainable, evidencing the long-term commitment of the sponsoring institution, faculty, and local community.
In addition to developing intercultural competence, service-learning can lead to greater civic responsibility and transform participants into global citizens. Engaging with a host community in a service project enables participants to go beyond crossing cultural bridges to building bridges that improve society on local and global levels.
By becoming more actively involved in community-based service-learning projects abroad, participants will better understand the relationship between theory and practice and learn how to apply knowledge that can have an immediate and positive long-term impact on the host community. By choosing study abroad with a conscience, global service-learning participants enhance their awareness of cultural differences, increase their academic understanding of social problems, gain hands-on experience, and return home knowing that they made a valuable social contribution.
ANDREA KIELY has worked in study abroad offices at Cornell University and Ithaca College. She most recently served as the University of Georgia associate director of international education. RICHARD KIELY is an assistant professor in the University of Georgia college of education. He has worked for 10 years facilitating and advising the development of service-learning courses in Central America and Africa.