Sarah Ash :: Food, Bioprocessing & Nutrition Sciences George Hess :: Forestry &Environmental Resources)

Jessica Jameson :: CommunicationAnnette Moore :: Parks, Recreation, &Tourism Management

Creating a portfolio of assignments to meet your learning goals using

reflection & service

Today’s Objectives• Describe the need for critical reflection• Identify reflection-related learning outcomes• Describe examples of critical reflection

assignments & rubrics• Identify how critical reflection can be incorporated

into your courses, based on learning outcomes

Role of Critical Reflection in Service-Based Courses

Academic material

Relevant service

Critical reflection

Learning outcomes

Challenges of working in a service setting with students

•Making sure that students are “getting” the learning outcomes that you want

– Especially if you have little control over the experience itself

{NOTE: You need to make sure that the experience can deliver the desired outcomes}

•Helping to guide their learning in your absence– Especially when you don’t know what they are

learning because you are not there

Challenges, continued

Making sure that the students are not learning the “wrong” thing

– Especially when they are in situations conducive to reinforcing stereotypes E.g., when they are in “unfamiliar” territory with respect

ethnicity, socio-economic status.– Or to seeing inappropriately simple solutions to

complex problems.• E.g., when they get “warm fuzzies” from working with

kids or heartfelt thanks from community agencies.

Challenges, continued

Assessing and documenting student learning– Especially in the absence of traditional objective

measures (e.g., fact-based exams)• For assigning grades• For internal or external review committees or

accrediting organizations.• For scholarly work

– Quantitative– Qualitative

More generally, consider that…

Learning from experience can be “counter-normative” to most students’ educational backgrounds.

– You are asking them to develop their own unique learnings based on their specific experiences.

• You may even be asking them to question the accuracy or relevance of what they have learned in their classes, textbooks or from other resources.

– This is NOT the same as asking them to simply reproduce what someone else has taught them.

Critical reflection is the key to learning from experience

Reflection is.... “active, persistent and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it, and the further conclusions to which it tends.”

John Dewey, 1910. How We Think

Before you can develop an assignment, you need to decide...

• What is its purpose?– How does it help you meet your desired learning

outcomes?• As a result of completing this assignment, students will

have shown their ability to....

This means that you need to...

• Identify your learning outcomes– What do you want your students to learn from

their experiences?• What role(s) is/are these experiences playing?

• It can be helpful to write them out and then see if there are ways to categorize them

Activity Break

• What are your goals and/or outcomes/objectives for using service in your course(s)?– Goal = Broad and not easily assessable

• “As a result of participating in this experience, students should have an understanding of....”

– Outcome/Objective=Specific and assessable• “As a result of participating in this experience, students

should be able to...” USE ACTION VERBS!

Examples of “action verbs” for writing specific objectives using Bloom’s

Taxonomy

Bloom’s Classification Examples of Learning-Related Behaviors

Knowledge Identify, define, order

Comprehension Explain describe, restate

Application Apply, solve, choose

Analysis Analyze, compare, contrast

Synthesis Synthesize, develop, propose

Evaluation Evaluate, assess, judge, critique

SOME EXAMPLES of CATEGORIES of LEARNING

Academic Enhancement To improve academic learning◦ Seeing classroom content in the service environment

What’s the same, what’s different? Why?

Civic Learning To improve students’ understanding of issues related to civic

engagement People coming together to meet collective objectives

From students within their groups National/International programs, interventions, etc.

Personal Growth To improve students’ understanding of themselves

• Their assumptions, biases, strengths, weaknesses, etc.• Relative to their personal and/or professional lives

Assignment Examples

George

Natural Resources Measurements

PRT 358Recreation Program Planning

Annette

Guiding reflection: One approachThe DEAL Model for Critical Reflection

[Ash and Clayton]

Describe an experience objectively

Examine it using prompts associated with learning goals

Articulate a Learning about it

Jessica

COM 466Nonprofit Leadership & Development

Core course in Minor in Nonprofit Studies: Learning objectives focus on five leadership challenges facing the nonprofit sector:

• Aligning mission, methods, and resources• Balancing individual interests and the common good• Earning the public trust• Capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity• Moving beyond charity to systemic change

Leadership Challenge 4: Capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity (description)

Learning Objective Level

Learning Objective

LO 1: Identify and describe

Identify and describe opportunities and challenges associated with diversity

LO 2: Apply Apply an understanding of the tensions between the opportunities and the challenges associated with diversity to specific examples, as they confront nonprofit leaders

LO 3: Analyze Analyze strategies for maximizing opportunities associated with diversity, including the reasons for and implications of leaders’ selection and implementation of specific strategies

LO 4: Evaluate Evaluate the appropriateness (in terms of effectiveness, integrity, etc.) of strategies for maximizing opportunities associated with diversity

Leadership Challenge 4: Capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity (description)

LO Level (Examples of) Associated Guiding Questions

LO 1 What does diversity mean in the context of a particular nonprofit organization or a particular issue area in the nonprofit sector?

LO 2 How does diversity impact particular nonprofit organizations?

LO 3 Why do organizations choose particular strategies for capitalizing on diversity?

LO 4 What changes might nonprofit leaders need to make in order to more successfully capitalize on the opportunities associated with diversity?

Sample Reflection PromptsUse Diagram A to discuss the various populations that your non profit may need to take

into account when capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity.– Identify the populations included in each context (internally, those served, and in the

broader community).– On a scale of 1-10 characterize the amount of overlap between the following contexts. In

other words, to what extent does the organization’s diversity embody of the diversity of the a) local community and b) populations served?

a) Internal and Local Community

b) Internal and Those Served

Provide evidence that supports your characterization of the degree of overlap between the diversity of the organization and that of the local community and the populations served.

Reflection Tools: Diagram ALeadership Challenge 4: Capitalizing on opportunities associated with Diversity

Diagram A

Internal

Those Served

Local Community

Reflection Tools: Diagram BLeadership Challenge 4: Capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity

Diagram B: Using the evaluative criteria Efficiency:

1 10

Effectiveness:

1 10

Integrity:

1 10

Sustainability:

1 10

Approach:

Sample Rubric: Capitalizing on Opportunities Associated with DiversityLO1: Identify: Use course readings to define the concept of diversity and opportunities associated with it.

__ Identifies possible definitions of diversity according to readings. __ Identifies possible opportunities associated with diversity according to readings.

LO2: Describe: Explain the concept of diversity and the opportunities associated with it in your own words.

__ Explains diversity in own words. __ Explains opportunities associated with diversity in own words.

LO3: Apply: Provide a (n) example(s) from your partner organization that illustrates why diversity is important for the organization and shows the extent to which the organization is diverse.

__Identifies the various populations your partner organization may need to take into account when capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity.

__ Uses a specific example to identify ways in which the nonprofit organization is and or is not diverse. __ Provides an example of how diversity positively and or negatively affects the organization. __ Provides an example that illustrates how the nonprofit attempts to ensure inclusion of diverse perspectives and voices.

LO4: Analyze: Analyze the strategies your partner organization uses to capitalize on opportunities associated with diversity in light of the evaluative criteria.

__ Discusses the strengths and limitations of current approaches. __ Discusses the tensions the nonprofit faces when making these choices. __ Considers alternative approaches that would increase the organization’s capacity to incorporate diverse

perspectives and discusses the challenges associated with these alternatives in light of the evaluative criteria.

LO5: Synthesize: Propose a new idea that your partner organization might use to capitalize on opportunities associated with diversity.

__ Provides a new idea for capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity. __ Explains why the new idea might lead to increased capacity to capitalize on opportunities associated

with diversity. __ Discusses changes that need to occur for the new idea to be implemented. __ Discusses likelihood of new idea being carried out.

LO6: Evaluate: Provides BOTH short term AND long term recommendations for capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity while addressing associated challenges.

__ Provides short-term recommendations for capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity. __ Provides long-term recommendations for capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity. __ Discusses challenges faced when implementing these recommendations. __ Provides way to deal with challenges of implementing these recommendations.

Sample 4-Sentence AL on DiversityArticulated Learning Worksheet

I learned that… capitalizing on opportunities associated with diversity is vital to

organizational capacity building I learned this when… I learned this in my first experience with [NPO], outside of

classroom introductions This learning matters because… diversity is vital to the growth and progress of

non profits. In light of this learning I will… I plan to continually look for strengths in others.

Sample Reflections on DiversityThis learning matters because the [NPO] must find ways to overcome diversity

in order to accomplish their mission. Diversity is naturally resisted by almost all people. People are naturally attracted to what is familiar and change is usually resisted. It is most likely that people at [NPO] enjoy going to the [NPO] and would resist anything that felt like a forced change. If the [NPO] set goals to increase the number of low-income families at its facilities it may make some members uncomfortable and compel them to leave. The problem seems to be, can you create an atmosphere that organically produces diversity? I think you can but it requires first creating a culture that realizes the importance of diversity within the organization. This requires leaders and volunteers who are focused on accomplishing the mission and who understand the critical role that diversity plays in accomplishing that mission.

Sample Reflections on DiversityIn light of this learning I will use the leadership positions I have in the future

to first identify and then find how to capitalize on diversity. Making others aware that diversity is a vital part of the success an organization can assist in the implementation of diversification. I will also do my best to be open to diverse environments even if I am uncomfortable. An easy way to do this now is to expand what I do at the [NPO] . Some [people] are very easy to get along with and play with while others are not. The [people]I tend to spend less time with are those who I have trouble identifying with. This rarely has to do with their race or the income level…but may be because they have a special need or disability. Understanding the importance of not only accepting, but appreciating diversity will drive me in making my relationships within the [NPO] reflect that.

Activity Break•Review your course learning goals•Draft learning outcomes for a reflection experience

•Outline reflection exercises and assignments

Share Ideas

Wrap Up