Community Learning Courses

All of the following courses are Community Learning intensive which means that they require students to be involved in the community in a setting which relates to the subject matter of the course. Academic credit is given for the learning that occurs in the community setting. Students are expected to engage in critical analysis of community issues and synthesize classroom based on knowledge of personal experience. Community Learning designate courses require a minimum of 15 hours in the community, often more.

EXPLORING TEACHING
(ED 101a/102a)

Sandy Brownscombe and Cathy Smeltzer Erb

This course is designed to give the student a means for assessing him/herself as a prospective teacher. The students engage in basic communication skills development, participate as a teacher assistant in several school settings, and encounter the demands and rewards of the teaching profession in a variety of ways.

FIRST YEAR SEMINAR
(GVC 111a/b/c/d/e/f/g/h)

Nancy Heisey, Byron Peachey, Vernon Jantzi and Deanna Durham

This foundational course introduces first year students to the breadth of the liberal arts curriculum and to the skills needed for successful university work. Course themes focus on stories: scholarly, personal, faith and community. As an interdisciplinary course, this class invites exploration of class participants' background and experience, faith, and involvement with others, and develops a deeper understanding of their place in relationship to God, the academy, and the community, using the theme of Micah 6:8. Learning is facilitated in large and small group settings on the campus and within the local community. Assignments include written personal reflection, reading, book and article responses, selected campus activities, community learning, and a final research project.

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL WORK
(SOWK 121)

Jane Wenger Clemens

Introduction to Social Work explores the social work profession including primary social work values, generalist social work practice, basic relationship and intervention skills and explores social work career opportunities. Students do agency visits and a 22-hour volunteer experience at a human service agency.

READING AND WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM
(ED 391 )

Mark Hogan

The precesses of reading and writing provide a framework for all instruction. The focus of this course examines literacy across the curriculum with emphasis on providing the classroom teacher with strategies to enhance literacy development. The course is designed to teach methods, techniques, and strategies to equip the classroom teacher to become a content area literacy provider.

One of the requirements of this course is participation in community learning activities (10 hours) that demonstrate the students' application of the knowledge gained during the class. Journal logs were collected that indicated the time spent in community learning, the application of the knowledge gained in the class and the reflection on what the student would continue to do to enhance the literacy and content area knowledge of the student(s). The EMU students could chose from a given list of area cooperating agencies or could offer his/her own placement suggestion.

LIFE SCIENCE PRACTICUM
(BIOL 211)

Roman Miller

Experiential community learning in areas related to future vocation is coordinated with classroom instruction. Typical experiences may involve hospital, biomedical organizations, clinics, rescue squads, health departments, environmental organizations or life science education. Multiple classroom sessions reflect on 20-30 hours of contact time in the practicum assignment.

CONVERSATION AND READINGS
(SPAN 301)

Moira Rogers

This Spanish course is a study and a practice in speaking, writing, and reading Spanish along with a study of the Latin American and Spanish cultures.

Community Learning is offered as an alternative project. The students have the chance to become involved in a project in the community to allow them to be immersed in Hispanic culture and to be able to practice their language skills.

INTERMEDIATE SPANISH II
(SPAN 212)

Moira Rogers

This course is a study in speaking, writing, and reading Spanish through US Latino culture. The focus revolves around Hispanic Americans and the experiences, beliefs and attitudes that they bring into our present-day culture.

Participation in Community Learning is required as a part of this class. This involvement allows that student to be immersed in the Hispanic culture and also allows practice of the language skills. Keeping a journal and turning in a short reflective paper is required at the time of the final exam.

COLLEGE WRITING
(ENG 132A)

Martha Greene Eads

This semester, Marti had the students focus on the historical period surrounding World War II, featuring a study of Diet Eman's memoir Things We Couldn't Say, the collection of oral history interviews with World War II conscientious objectors, and the writing of research papers on topics that emerged from the students' reading and interviews. The interview transcripts and recordings became a part of the Library of Congress Veterans History Project archives, and they took a class trip to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
(BUAD 442)

Spencer Cowles

The purpose of this course was to explore the international environment of business, to examine the implications for specific functional areas of doing business, and to understand strategies for competing internationally. The course took a cultural approach; that is, it was grounded in the conviction that, in order to be effective, any attempt to do business internationally must be grounded in a thorough understanding of the culture of the host country since culture affects product design, marketing, production and personnel management. The course focused on global markets that are especially important at this point in time with particular emphasis on East Asia and the European Union.

The component of Community Learning in this course involved the students in a community service organization that is actively working with Harrisonburg's ethnically diverse population in order to enhance their cross-cultural understanding. Academic credit was given for the learning that occurred in the community setting. Students were expected to engage in critical analysis of community issues and synthesize classroom-based knowledge and personal experience in a written report. The course required a minimum of 15 hours in the community.

COMMUNITY LEARNING IN HISPANIC EDUCATION
(SPAN 392A)

Moira Rogers and Deanna Durham

This course is designed to combine experiential community learning in the local "Latino" community with a reflection on larger historical and current immigration/migration issues and policies. Class discussions focused on readings, personal immigrant stories, students' community learning experiences, and visits to local, regional, and national agencies. Class reading and writing, presentations, lectures and discussions were conducted in a bilingual format varying from week to week.

This Community Learning intensive course only met once a week in the classroom. In addition to the weekly class meetings, approx. 2-3 hours per week in a community learning setting/agency was required (35-40 hours in total). The agency was engaged with issues/work directly connected to local immigrants. The community-based component of this class was evaluated through consistent attendance, journal logs, reflections in class, and formal written responses.

FAMILIES IN THE SOCIAL CONTEXT

(SOC 252A)
Deanna Durham

This course explores contemporary family structure and dynamics from historical, cross-cultural, intercultural, developmental and practical perspectives. A special focus on gender, race, and class guided the exploration of the interaction of the family with the social environment and other social institutions (public and private). The course also provided an overview of sexual identity development, love and courtship, exploration of gender roles, aging, and factors which contribute to family crisis.

Alone or with another class member, students were invited to interact with and interview an individual or family that is culturally different from their own. Specific topics including education of children, discipline, dating and marriage practices, role of religion/faith in family life, views on premarital sex, women in the formal work world, grief and responses to death and dying, mental health and treatment, etc. were required.

DEVELOPING AND SUSTAINING THE PEACEBUILDER
(JPCS 311)

Earl Zimmerman

This seminar is a designate community learning course. It was an experiential/reflective course with time for active exploration of involvement in society, for reflecting on the students' personal experiences, and for projecting themselves into life after school. The more informal class structure allowed time for synthesizing their learning into an approach to life that tapped into their deepest passions and the worlds' greatest needs. The course introduced them to people in the community and beyond, whose lives and work reflect justice, compassion and attention to the spirit.

Each person chose a project of service, accompaniment, prophetic witness or research that engaged them off-campus for 2-3 hours weekly. There were periodic reporting opportunities given for these projects.

Community Learning Courses 2006/2007

Community Learning Courses 2005/2006