Dawn Duncan, Associate Professor of English and Global Studies Joan Kopperud, Chair of English Department
Global Studies 118: Culture, Identity, and Dialogue has been offered for four years at Concordia College. Three goals frame the course:
Students will…
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against the background of cultural diversity and human commonality;
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This course is required for all first-year Global Studies majors. While the program is overseen by an interdisciplinary faculty steering committee, a single instructor teaches the course. Primarily for first-year students, other students may elect to take the course. The majority of the students in the course are residential.
Service-Learning
Service-learning, the essential method for achieving civic engage- ment in the course, is “a teaching and learning method that up- holds a commitment to appreciating the assets of and serving the needs of a community partner while enhancing student learning and academic rigor through the practice of intentional, reflective thinking and responsible civic action” (Duncan and Kopperud, Service-Learning Companion, 4). In addition to service-learning, students engage in other traditional learning methods, including critical thinking, discussion, writing, and reading. The class in- corporates newspapers and journal articles as primary resources to inform students about the contemporary issues with which they will engage.
Service-learning helps students apply and test the theoretical knowledge they are gaining as they partner with community or- ganizations that primarily serve immigrant and ethnically diverse populations in the local community. Through human interaction with culturally diverse individuals, service-learning may confirm or challenge what students read in textbooks or hear from the media. Gaining a firsthand knowledge of globally diverse per- spectives and common human values helps move students for- ward as responsible world citizens.
Civic Engagement and Contemplation, Action, Reflection, Commitment (CARC)
Students grow in civic literacy and knowledge of the principles of democracy through focused readings and discussion on the following themes: respectful questioning and civic discourse; cultural dignity and civic identity; the legacy of colonialism in a postcolonial world; the convergence of economics, religion, and politics; gender roles and societal relationships; and cultural artis- tic expression. With each theme, students must produce a major paper or project that illustrates their increased knowledge and understanding.
Students practice their citizenship skills and greater political involvement through a learning cycle called CARC: Contempla- tion, Action, Reflection, Commitment. Students engage in focus exercises, such as discovering a relevant civic issue about which they have a genuine interest, contemplating and researching the issue so that they may engage in informed dialogue, and making an action plan that details the level of involvement to which they are committing in order to address the issue. Students also prac- tice their democratic involvement through their service-learning partnership. Additionally, students are asked to make formative and summative commitments as citizens. Commitment is “a dis- ciplined effort to act upon your belief in the communal necessity of service and in the benefits it affords all involved” (Duncan and Kopperud 122). During the formative process, students commit to moving to a deeper level of understanding through additional investigation into specific civic issues. As a summative commit- ment, students are asked to make a specific plan for future service to society that they will carry out in the next year, five years, and as a part of their calling in life.
Experiential learning occurs during the action phase of CARC as students serve at their partnership site. Action is “the on-site work undertaken with community partners in order to meet learning and serving objectives” (Duncan and Kopperud 112). Such action may entail physical labor, intellectual skills, and/or social or emotional support. Students keep a log indicating date, time, service provided, and partner signature.
Critical thinking and reflection is stressed during the contem- plation and reflection stages of the CARC cycle. Contemplation requires students “to deliberate consciously about the challenges,
needs, and expectations of the service experience” (Duncan and Kopperud 107). Students contemplate what they need to learn prior to each service session, during structured opportunities in class, with regard to learning objectives, and as questions or issues arise. Reflection is “the lens through which [students] think criti- cally about the experience, deeply considering how the action in- tentionally links to specific learning goals” (115). Students reflect, for example, on the physical situation, ways in which they stretch intellectually, and the social/emotional dimensions of relating with others in society. Reflection takes a variety of forms: writing, speaking, projects, and presentations. In short, students critically think about their role as citizens in a democratic society and share those reflections as part of their civic engagement.
Assessment
Both formative and summative assessment methods are imple- mented in this introductory Global Studies course. The assess- ment methods demonstrate what students are learning about global culture and civic engagement. Some course assignments are specifically formulated both to demonstrate student learning and to assess whether students are fulfilling the course goals. A debriefing session follows each method of assessment and helps students assess their own learning.
To fulfill the learning goals, students closely research a focus culture, reading primary and secondary source material, completing primary field research at their service-learning site, and attend- ing to cultural perspectives on course topics. To demonstrate their learning and provide formative assessment, they complete a cultural profile that includes a historical timeline, translation of language phrases, analysis of the influence of that culture on the U.S. and vice versa, evaluation of the noteworthiness of that civilization, and a descriptive travel blurb on a major city. Students also write two essays: the convergence of politics, religion, and economics and gender roles in the focus culture. Their CARC service-learning journals provide their instructors material for continuous, formative assessment. Finally, students present a creative project that high- lights the artistic contributions of the focus culture.
Summative assessment requires students to create a Plan of Commitment, including how they have grown as engaged citi- zens, why they have chosen this plan of action, and how they believe such action may positively contribute to society. Students also respond to the following survey questions: How has service- learning been a transformative educational experience? How does it meaningfully connect to your civic experience and involvement? How has it contributed to your success as a student and a member of the college community?
To quote a student response to the summative survey:
“Working with refugees helped open my eyes to the diversity of our community. I used to see this community as a homogeneous area with little diversity. I longed to live in a bigger city where I could interact with people from different cultures. Through working with my community partners, I realize that there are people that have come from all over the world to make this area their home. These people come from many different backgrounds and share different
beliefs, customs, and cultures. By working with them, I am able to learn about their cultures and understand other countries better. I also connect more with my community by understanding some of the problems that refugees have and by connecting with people who are trying to help refugees settle in the area.”
The results of the qualitative survey indicate gains in civic en- gagement, in achieving the learning objectives, and in personal growth. The next step in our process will be collecting quantita- tive assessment results. The Director of Assessment will collabo- rate on a survey of Global Studies majors on their service-learn- ing experience and its effects on their development as citizens and civic leaders.
References
Duncan, Dawn and Joan Kopperud 2008. The Service-Learning Companion. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Supplemental Materials
A course syllabus, sample assignments, student work samples, and other helpful materials are available at http://www.concordiacollege.edu/academic/integrative/
I. Contributor’s Name and Contact Information
Main contact for submission: Dawn Duncan
Associate Professor of English and Global Studies Phone: 218-299-3961
Fax: 218-299-4933 Email: [email protected] Joan Kopperud
Chair of English Department Phone: 218-299-3710 Fax: 218-299-4933 Email: [email protected] Concordia College 901 8th Street South Moorhead, MN 56562
II. Institutional Description
a. Concordia College, Moorhead, MN b. Four Year
c. Private Liberal Arts College d Residential Campus
e. 2728 FTE undergraduates; 700 first-year students f. 1667 residential students; 1057 commuter students; 668 first-year residential; 32 first-year commuter;
CASE STUDY
FORT HAYS STATE UNIVERSITY
Times Talk and the First-Year Experience
Chapman Rackaway, Assistant Professor of Political Science Mark Colwell, Undergraduate Student
Times Talk, a weekly brownbag luncheon series on articles and topics from The New York Times and The Hays Daily News, was created in fall 2004 at Fort Hays State University, a four-year, public, residential university. The primary goal behind Times Talk was to better develop the culture of intellectual inquiry on our campus and to encourage New York Times and Hays Daily News readership among our students. We believed that by showcasing a varied set of Times topics in a regular non-classroom environment we would inspire greater interest in the Times and, therefore, more readership.
Times Talk is administered on campus by the university’s Amer- ican Democracy Project (ADP). Faculty, staff, administration, stu- dents, and members of the local Hays community attend and pres- ent topical Times Talks. Every week a volunteer presenter picks a topic from (an) article(s) and develops a half-hour presentation that is followed by open discussion on the topic among attendees. Times Talk is held in the Memorial Union during lunchtime, re- moved from traditional classroom environments — important to us as we wished to stress that Times Talk is not a class. The New York Times sponsors lunches to the first 25 attendees (and the free lunch does bring students out).
Student Engagement
All Times Talks are accessible to all students, whether on-campus or at a distance. Talks stream live from our Web site so that online students can participate with our on-campus students. FHSU’s First-Year Experience leadership requires attendance at or view- ing a number of Times Talks by all first-year students. Students are also welcome to present Times Talks. Presenters are often from classes of professors who are supporters of the program, including students from FYE courses.
Interdisciplinary Approaches
Times Talk is a co-curricular project that stresses interdisciplin- ary approaches. Leadership, Political Science, Art, Agriculture, Education, Geosciences, and many other departments have par- ticipated in Times Talks. The topics of Times Talks are as varied, broad, and in depth as international, national, and local coverage in The Times and The Hays Daily News, so any academic program, class, or staffer can participate. The nature of Times Talk allows
it to cross between curricular and co-curricular programming. As a unique program, Times Talk has also developed into its own “brand” on campus, being the cornerstone of ADP’s efforts.
The program’s opportunity to discuss current and interdisciplin- ary topics is important, because a university may default into having topics that regularly fall into a small set of academic areas, such as political science or history. We have operated from the beginning with the assumption that any academic area can find material in the newspapers for a current and topical presentation. For example, Special Education has given a Times Talk, “Is Eng- lish Vanishing? What the Hispanic Influx Means for Schools & Society.” The Geosciences faculty have presented pieces on being a “citizen scientist,” and students in business classes have presented outsourcing and eminent domain. Variety of topics is vital so that the entire campus buys in.
Assessment
The assessment mechanism of Times Talk has been modified several times in the past two years of the program. Our initial for- mal assessment of the program began in fall 2005 with a tally of the number of participants per event (Table 1).
Table 1
Times Talk Participation 2005-2006
Date Number in Attendance Date Number in Attendance 44 24 22 24 28 22 TOTAL 665
Although Times Talk began in September, tabulation of the attendance data can only be calculated since October 20, 2005. Using an average attendance for presentations, the estimated number of participants was more than 800 for the year.
Table 2
Times Talk Audience Breakdown, Spring 2006
Date Audience Student Faculty Staff Community First Time
NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA 2 24 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA 4 2 8 2 22 2 2 28 2 22 8 2 2 TOTAL 422 101 88 17 5 43
The data from Table 2 suggest that 10.1% of the audience dur- ing the spring semester were new participants. In addition, the student attendance was higher than any other group participating in Times Talk with 101 participating in these presentations. Com- pared to the 2006 fall semester numbers (Table 3), the trends have continued.
Table 3
Times Talk Participation, Fall 2006
Date Total Student Faculty Staff Community
4 2 4 6 2 4 8 2 TOTAL 403 163 163 57 21
While the numbers of participants have grown according to Table 2 and Table 3, the number of first time participants has also increased. Table 4 indicates this change.
Table 4
First-Time Participants, Fall 2006
Date Total Student Faculty Staff Community
4 4 6 4 4 2 2 4 4 2 2 8 4 4 4 2 TOTAL 79 39 19 9 12
Table 4 illustrates an increasing number of first-time partici- pants throughout the fall 2006 semester. New participants are well- distributed among the different groups for which we collect data. Community members make up a higher percentage of first-time attendees, and on three occasions did Times Talk fail to attract a new student.
Table 5
Weekly Times Talk Satisfaction Results, Spring 2006
1 2 3 4 5 Total Strongly Disagree Somewhat Disagree Neutral Somewhat Agree Strongly Agree TOTAL 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Table 5 provides a clear picture of participant satisfaction at the event. Nearly each of the events warranted a 60% or higher participant satisfaction rate. A few presentations (Week 4 and Week 8) yielded participant satisfaction levels of 100%. Week 4 featured a presentation on food as an aphrodisiac, given by the University’s director of residential life as a prelude to Valentine’s
Day; Week 8 focused on the declassification of Pluto as a planet. The Valentine’s Day presentation was so popular that attendees were referencing it on the University’s blog three weeks later. In addition, the levels of dissatisfaction remained extremely low throughout the semester. We will augment the existing survey data with assessment of first-year experience outcomes at the end of the 2006-2007 academic year. We are specifically interested in attitudes reflecting newspaper readership, political orientation change, and discussion of Times Talk presentations with students outside the classroom.
Supplemental Materials
Times Talk Web site http://www.fhsu.edu/adp/timestalk.shtml Source http://www.nytimes.com
Live Times Talk feed http://www.fhsu.edu/live/timestalk/
I. Contributors’ Names and Contact Information
Main contact for submission: Chapman Rackaway
Assistant Professor of Political Science
Campus Coordinator, American Democracy Project Fort Hays State University
316 Rarick Hall 600 Park Street Hays, KS 67601 Phone: 785-628-5391 Fax: 785-628-4162 Email: [email protected] Mark Colwell Undergraduate Student
Assistant Director, American Democracy Project Center for Civic Leadership
600 Park Street Hays, KS 67601
II. Institutional Description
a. Fort Hays State University, Hays, KS
b. Four-Year Carnegie II Masters level University c. Public
d. Residential
e. 788 first-year students AY2006-2007
CASE STUDY
FRANKLIN PIERCE UNIVERSITY