Course Outline

Higher Colleges of Technology

Common Course Outline

• Course Title: Community Service Learning
• Course Number: LSH 2903
• Course Credit Units: 3.00
• Total Contact Periods Per Week: 4
• Degree Level: AAS/BAS
• Course Description:
  Students explore theories and concepts relating to human rights and civic responsibility, identify a community need and engage in service in partnership with an existing organization.
• Additional Information:
• Grading Mode: N - Normal Grading Mode
• Prerequisite Course(s):
• Corequisite Course(s):
• Equivalent Course(s):
• Grade Scale: HCT Grading Scheme
• Must Pass:
• Course Learning Outcomes:
  • CLO 1- Analyze some of the theories and concepts of human needs, rights, and responsibilities through reading, discussion, presentations and written work.
  • CLO 2- Identify the different kinds of contributions to society, ranging from giving money to charity to empowering people through teaching, loans, cooperatives or other means.
  • CLO 3- Plan and carry out a college event and a community service project.
  • CLO 4- Write reflections on a regular basis to increase self and community awareness.
  • CLO 5- Evaluate their fieldwork experience and make recommendations for further action.
• Delivery Framework:

Schedule	Content	CLO
Session 1	Introduction – Course overview	1-5
	Activities: Introduction to syllabus Introductory lecture Guest Speaker:  Chair of Student Services to present the various college events of the semester and recruit volunteers (to fulfill Assessment Activity 4 outlined above).
Session 2	Human Needs and Motivations	1
	Required Readings: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (reliable online source to be identified)Activities: Lecture (explaining the hierarchy) Group work (finding examples for each level of the hierarchy) Class Discussion – Does every human being have the right to reach the top of the Maslow pyramid? Does every human being have the capability of reaching that level? How about the opportunity to do so? What obstacles could stand in your way? What would facilitate reaching that level?
Session 3	Human Rights and Civic Responsibilities	1
	Required Readings: Selected points from The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/) A reading on Civic Responsibility (to be identified) Activities: Lecture based on in-class reading of fundamental human rights Class Discussion – How do these rights relate to the different levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Group Work: Using the Civic Responsibility reading as a springboard, students create a list of their civic responsibilities towards their community and society at large.
Session 4	From Charity to Empowerment (Part 1) – Some definitions	1-2
	Required Readings: Selected passages from Mohammed Yunus’ Banker to the Poor and Creating a World without Poverty Selected passages from The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World by Jacqueline Novogratz The Acumen Fund Celebrating Inspiring Women (link on http://www.thehungersite.com) Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development (reliable online source to be identified) Class Discussion: Why should we contribute to society? (one’s duty as dictated by social/religious tenets, but also in light of human needs and rights) How can we contribute to society? (random charity, regular charity, moral and physical support, empowerment through teaching, loans, and cooperatives, literacy programs, awareness campaigns).
Session 5	From Charity to Empowerment (Part 2) – The importance of planning	1-2
	Required Readings: Selected passages from Mohammed Yunus’ Banker to the Poor and Creating a World without Poverty Selected passages from The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World by Jacqueline Novogratz “Starfish Hurling and Community Service” (online PDF Document) Activities: In-class readings and guided discussion of selected readings by Yunus and Novogratz (above) Lecture/in-class reading: “Starfish Hurling and Community Service” Class Discussion: Effectiveness of planned versus random service
Session 6	Giving by clicking: Online Sites	2
	Activities: Group online reading and presentation: In groups, students will explore one of three sites (the hunger site, the breast cancer site, and freerice.com) to determine how they operate and how effective they are. They will then present their findings to the rest of the class. Class Discussion: Comparing giving to charity and giving through these sites: What’s the difference between giving money to charity directly and giving through these sites? Which method is more effective? Why? What are the drawbacks of each?
Session 7	Choosing a Service Project	3
	Group online reading and presentation: In pairs, students select a case study from a bank of local recent community service examples and present it to the class in order to get an idea of the kind of ongoing service efforts in the UAE. Activities: Relevant Guest Speakers – Possible ones include: o    A spokesperson from a local charity organization o    The college Chair of Student Services (to present possible ideas in the college community) o    The college Chair of Facilities (if applicable – in case there is a possible project to  be done with facilities staff) Class Discussion: Brainstorming of possible projects and identifying the project(s) to be carried out. (Depending on the students and on the project(s) chosen, there could be one class project in which everyone participates, or several projects to be done in small groups, one project per group)
Session 8	Planning the Project	3
	Activities: In groups and with teacher guidance, students will plan the various phases of the project. Option A – One project for the whole class: Each group will have an assigned role in planning the project Option B – Each group has a different project: Each member of the group will have an assigned role in planning the project Planning could involve researching, interviews, discussions, preparation of materials, contacting people by phone or e-mail, arranging transportation, setting times, etc.
Session 9	Introducing the Reflection Journal and Starting the Project	3-4
	Activities: Lecture to introduce the reflection journal and explain the requirements Group Work: Students to go through the journal and read examples of guided questions and responses. START THE FIELDWORK: From this session and for the next 4 sessions, students will be doing fieldwork and documenting it in their reflection journals which they’ll be sending to their teacher on a regular basis. Depending on the nature of the project, the teacher could be present with the students during the field work, but will always be available for consultation and guidance at any time during the field work.
Session 10 to Session 13	FIELD WORK and Reflection Field work is four hours a week and should fit the students’ class schedule and not interfere with their other courses. Depending on the project undertaken, the four hours a week of field work could be held at any time during the week, even on the weekend. For logistics reasons, lessons should be scheduled at the end of the day so that students can go out to do field work and not have to come back to college. Monitoring off-campus students: o    Teacher will be in regular contact with a key person at the place where the students are doing the field work: A system will be set up with that key person to check on attendance and punctuality. o    Unannounced on-site visits will be conducted by the teacher on a regular basis to monitor students’ work and progress and to liaise with the key on-site person. Monitoring on-campus students: o    Like for off-campus students, a key person on campus will be identified as supervisor of the students’ activities. The teacher will be in regular contact with that person to monitor students’ attendance and punctuality. o    The teacher will conduct spot-checks to monitor students’ work and progress. Reflective journals for both on-campus and off-campus students will be due at the end of each week. These could be online or hard-copy as determined by the teacher. Deadlines should be adhered to, with late journals penalized.	3-4
Session 14	Presentation Preparation	4-5
	Activities: Lecture – Teacher will explain the requirements of the final presentation Feedback – Teacher will give relevant feedback on reflections to aid with the presentation preparation Reading: Students will explore a website to help them prepare for their presentation: http://www.servicelearning.org Group Activity: Students will start planning their presentations by summarizing their experience, finding visuals to support their presentations, and integrating their individual reflections.
Session 15	Presentation Delivery	4-5
	Students will deliver their presentations to various groups
Session 16	Course Wrap-Up	1-5
	Activities: Lecture and Class Discussion: Students and teacher will review the concepts introduced in the course. Teacher will give feedback on presentations and explain what is required in the final report, which will basically be a written version of their presentations and a final reflection on the course, as well as recommendations for further action. The report will be due during final assessment week.

• Teaching AND Learning Strategies:
  The breakdown of the 70% coursework assessment is at the discretion of the department. The following breakdown is a suggestion only:
  Oral Presentation: 10%
  Presentations of case studies (Outcomes: 1,2)
  Participation: 30%
  Engagement and participation in class discussions and field work (20%) Completion of preparatory tasks prior to field work (10%) (Outcomes: 1,2,3)
  Individual Assignment: 30%
  Required College Service activity (5%) Reflection Journals on Field Work (minimum 600-800 words) (20%) Reflection Journal – Miscellaneous (5%) (Outcomes: 3,4)
   
  You will be assigned a group and required to select a case study either from our bank of studies or from current newspaper stories and to participate in class discussions of assigned readings, as well as brainstorming sessions designed to identify possible service projects to set up and participate in. You will participate in four weeks of field work. Prior to doing the field work, you will be researching, planning in detail and organizing how you’re going to carry out that portion of the course. Each student will be required to volunteer to help out in one college event a semester, such as National Day, Open Day, Int’l Women’s Day, Careers Fair, Al Khayal Awards, Arts Show, etc. You will have the opportunity to select and sign up to assist in one of these events. The reflection journal is one of the most important elements of the course and is therefore heavily weighted. Students will be giving weekly written responses during their four weeks of field work. The journal will be semi-guided, asking students to reflect on certain questions or issues, as well as leaving room for free response, reflection, or commentary. Four 150-200 word entries will be required, one upon completion of each week of field work. The Reflection Journal (Miscellaneous) could be a guided, semi-guided, or free response on other portions of the course, be it a reading, a discussion, or a guest speaker’s ideas at different points in the course. In small groups of three or four, students will give final presentations to other college students (such as Foundations) about the field work they undertook to share their experience, discuss what they’ve learned, and make a recommendation for further action. Students will submit a final report consisting of a summary of their experience, recommendations and conclusions, as well as an introspective self assessment/reflection.
• Assessment Strategies:

Coursework - Set Exercises: 70% A range of assessments addressing all outcomes. (Outcomes: 1,2,3,4,5)

Final Assessment - Test: 30% Final Report and Reflection (minimum 500 words) and a Final Presentation. (Outcomes: 4,5)

Total Weight: 100%

• Required Educational Resources:
• Additional Educational Resources:
• Attachments:
• Special Comment: