Service
Learning Component for
C780
Creativity and Community
What is Service
Learning?
A cursory search on
Google will reveal that definitions of service learning abound. One that I found helpful to describe what it
means in this course is as follows:
A method
under which students learn and develop through active participation in
thoughtfully organized service experiences that meet actual community needs,
and which are coordinated with a formal educational institution to address and
support an academic curriculum.
www.colorado.edu/chancellorslrap/lcglossary.html
In this course, the
opportunity to participate in service learning means to see the concepts that
we are studying, in particular discourse community, creativity, and rhetoric,
at work in real-life situations. Service
learning, in short, is the chance to make your learning real
by giving you a chance not only to observe concepts at work in
the world but also be a participant in how they work. Thus, the term participant-observer (borrowed from social science research
methodologies) takes on an added importance, since you are not simply studying
phenomena; you are part of what you are studying, both participant and observer. This is a different stance than is often
assumed in much scholarly inquiry, which tends to regard the researcher/scholar
as disinterested and detached. You are
not simply studying a subject but actively working to help foster the
development of a particular community.
Service Learning Site
for C780
The community partner for
the service learning in this course is the Three Rivers Jenbe
Ensemble (TRJE). The following
description of the group is from their website at http://www.fwdc.org/Three_Rivers_Jenbe.htm. Visit their website for further
information. In addition, the
co-leaders of this group, Ketu Oladuwa
and Akin Lana Dada, will introduce themselves and the ensemble to our class on
Thursday, January 13.
Three
Rivers Jenbe Ensemble is committed to children’s
cultural identity, family-centered socialization, and community participation
through the development of a comprehensive cultural music curriculum centered
on the West Afrikan Mande-speaking
and Afrikan American cultures. Our work with 8 to17
year-olds intends to ground their self-concept in traditional cultural values
and principles that balance individual and group aspirations.
The Three Rivers Jenbe Ensemble is committed to providing parents with a
meaningful way to support their children’s cultural enrichment and community
involvement. TRJE promotes these commitments through meaningful inter- and
intra-family relationships in a safe, non-coercive, unique environment of mutual
respect and reciprocal support that teaches children and their parents to work
collectively and exercise individual responsibility.
By fostering a child’s
development in a traditional music ensemble, parents and family members are
exposed to the grounding values and principles of a
What Service Will I Do? What Will I Learn?
As a participant-observer in the Three
Rivers Jenbe Ensemble (TRJE) you will have the
opportunity provide service in these ways:
·
Assist with
teaching classes
·
Share
research notes with TRJE leaders
·
Collect
artifacts, write texts, and make presentations that promote community awareness
and support for TRJE and its mission as your research project for this class
Your learning will be assisted by taking
part in these activities:
·
Participating
in drumming, writing, dancing, storytelling (griot
studies), and/or yoga classes along with TRJE members as learners
·
Developing
qualitative research methods for language study and applying them for your own
research goals
·
Presenting
your research to real audiences that matter, both to you as researcher and to
TRJE
Requirements for the Service Learning Option
Those who opt to participate in the
service learning option are required to do more or less the same work as those
who do not, with one important difference:
namely, your final research project will be focused on TRJE as the
discourse community you will study.
Furthermore, you are required to participate in TRJE classes and
performances, as listed below under Site
Visit Calendar. Here are the basic requirements:
·
Two
hours/week for nine weeks attendance and participation in TRJE classes and
performances (you have at least four days/week to choose from). This includes both teaching and learning with
TRJE members.
·
Research
journal (required for everyone, not just the service learning option)
·
Share
research notes with TRJE leaders
·
Focus final
research project on TRJE
Site Visit Calendar
The following schedule
lists the locations, days, and times for classes, performances and other TRJE activities
to fulfill your service learning commitment for this class. At the moment, the calendar only runs through
the end of January, but February’s calendar should be similar. Classes and activities
will continue through March and April as well.
Since our service-learning
site is a community-sponsored group, as opposed to a traditional institutional
setting, we have to expect that some changes to the schedule may occur,
including new opportunities that may come available on short notice. I will do my best to keep you updated as such
changes occur.
I expect you to tell me
in advance (email or tell me in person) which classes and/or performances you
will be attending each week, so that I may alert the teachers/leaders of your
presence. You may change from week to
week—just let me know what you want to do.
January
Monday Classes (
1/24, 1/31)
Tuesday Classes ( 1/25)
Friday Classes (1/21, 1/28)
Saturday Classes (1/15, 1/22,
1/29)
Performances