Abstract:

Opportunities abound for higher education programs to engage external, community-based organizations (CBOs) in fulfilling the goal of providing culturally-relevant degrees and credentials. Moreover, the responsibility of institutions of higher education (IHEs) to provide instruction grounded in contexts of application is both pedagogically sound and ethically imperative. Through an analysis of results from Gelmon’s (2001) assessment matrix, Waters and Anderson-Lain (2014) revealed six unique conceptualizations of service learning outcomes that can serve as theoretical bases for structuring instruction that incorporates community-based components. The present study examines community organization, teacher educator and graduate educators’ perceptions of CBOs in instruction according to the six concepts and their commitment to integrating community-based experiences in the educative process.

Six unique concepts emerged:
(1) leadership,
(2) understanding course details,
(3) understanding the service-learning instructional method,
(4) course/project description,
(5) impact/influence on the community partner, and
(6) commitment to service-learning.

Recommendations are offered to support the identification of complementary community-based organizations and the measurement of meaningful student engagements with these organizations that can lead to increased commitment to course content and the development of cultural and social competency in disciplinary practice.

Keywords:

Service learning, community-based organizations, student engagement, cultural competency.