Suchergebnisse

The 2020 Democratic "Veepstakes" is now officially underway. Given that Biden often refers to himself as a "transitional" candidate, his choice of vice president is all the more important given that his running mate will be seen by many as … Continue reading →

Community based learning or service learning is a dynamic pedagogical opportunity for students to engage with their discipline in light of social concerns. This presentation will share the key challenges sociology students and lecturer encounter when working with charities and nonprofits with social justice missions. Students are asked to face what Pitt and Britzman (2003) call "difficult knowledge" in classroom readings and discussions on complicity to poverty and racism. The community engagement experience with local charities allows for a dialogue with the scholarly literature grounded in practical experience. Sociology students are challenged to see the institutional and wider structural inequalities upstream while working in community with a direct service role downstream. Taylor (2013) describes student engagement within this type of teaching tool that is critical of the status quo. Hall et al. (2004) argue that the classroom is best placed to navigate this new terrain whereas student volunteering independently might not facilitate reflection and academic literature. Students with a wide variety of needs engage with communities in different ways and lecturers may need to adjust and demonstrate flexibility to facilitate all learning environments.