Alternative Spring Break Jamaica! Service Learning and Civic Engagement in a Developing Country

Authors

  • Cheryl Clark Western Carolina University
  • C. Victoria Faircloth Western Carolina University
  • Rebecca Lasher Western Carolina University
  • Michael K. McDonald Western Carolina University

Keywords:

global competence, global education, policy, United States, Australia

Abstract

This article features the work of an interdisciplinary faculty collaborative project that involved 35 university students who participated in a week long spring break service learning trip to the island of Jamaica.  Details regarding the planning process are highlighted.  A section is included on the experiences of students, student outcomes, and faculty assessment of how outcomes were met. Finally, a section on lessons learned for university faculty who are interested in developing similar experiential learning experiences for students is provided for future planning efforts.

Author Biographies

Cheryl Clark, Western Carolina University

Received her ADN from the University of Indianapolis in 1968, her BSN from the University of Evansville in 1975, and her MSN from California State University in LA in 1981. She has worked in medical/surgical units, cardiac stepdown units, and long term care. For the past 13 years, she has been a nurse educator at WCU, working primarily in medical-surgical and mental health classes. She is certified in Faith Community Nursing. Her interest include spiritual care of patients and international nursing.

C. Victoria Faircloth, Western Carolina University

Associate Professor in the School of Teaching and Learning, College of Education, at Western Carolina University. She receved her doctorate in Education from the University of Georgia, in 1990. Her current interest in international service learning was started in 1997, when she became part of the university's teacher education program in Jamaica.

Rebecca Lasher, Western Carolina University

Rebecca has a masters in Social Work. She has years of experience in the field of social work, and is interested in school social work. She currently teaches in the Department of Social Work at WCU, where she has been nominated for the Chancellor's Disrtinguished Teaching Award. In addition ot her exceptional teaching, Rebecca also serves the entire campus community as the secretary of the Faculty Senate.

Michael K. McDonald, Western Carolina University

Michael is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Government and Politicsat the University of Maryland and Visiting Instructor in the Department of Political Science at WCU. His research and teaching interests focuses on international and economic development, internationl political economy, and international public health. For 2011-2012, he was a co-investigator on the WCU Poverty Project. Michael also researches the scholarship of teaching and learning, having published articles on experiential learning and civic engagement.

Downloads

Published

2013-04-26

Issue

Vol. 3, No. 1, April 2013

Section

General-NoTitle

License

The Global Partners in Education Journal (the “Publisher”) and the Author(s) agree as follows:

1. Author(s) hereby grant to Publisher all right, title, and interest in and to the Work, including copyright to all means of expression by any method now known or hereafter developed, including electronic format. If Publisher does not publish the Work within two (2) years of the Effective Date, copyright shall revert back to the Author. Publisher agrees to always credit Author(s) as the author(s) of the Work.

2. Publisher hereby grants Author a royalty-free, limited license for the following purposes, provided the Work is always identified as having first been published by Publisher.
    • The right to make and distribute copies of all or part of the Work for use in teaching;
    • The right to use all or part of the material contained in the Work in a book by the Author(s), or in a collection of the Author(s)’s work;
    • The right to use and distribute the Work internally at the Author(s)’s place of employment, and for promotion and any other non-commercial purposes;
    • The right to use figures and tables from the Work for any purpose;
    • The right to make presentations of material from the Work;
    • The right to use and distribute the Work on the Author(s)’s Web site and on the Author(s)’s university’s institute repository;
Such license shall be effective when the Work is first published in the Journal of Curriculum and Instruction.

3. The Author(s) represents and warrants that the Work: (a) is the Author(s)’s original work and that Author(s) has full power to enter into this agreement; (b) does not infringe the copyright or property right of another; (c) contains no materials which is obscene, libelous, defamatory or violates another’s civil right, right of privacy, or is otherwise unlawful; and (d) has not been previously published, in whole or in part. Author(s) shall indemnify and hold Publisher harmless against loss or expenses arising from breach of any such warranties.