This year I had the great fortune to participate as a leader in three service learning experiences. Each was an inspiring and rewarding experience.
To learn a little about service learning, I participated in Western's annual campus-wide program, Western Serves. I led a group of 9 students on a one-day trip to the London Cross Cultural Learner Centre, where we learned about the facilities, stuffed survey envelopes, and painted some of the living space, where new families often stay after relocating to Canada, above the resource centre.
I was selected as a co-leader for the University of Western Ontario's Alternative Spring Break Service learning initiative. Seven groups travel locally and internationally to provide service to, and learn from, their community partners. I traveled to Costa Rica between February 20th and 27th, where my team gave house visits and triage clinics in rural and urban communities.
In preparation for this week-long activity, our team participated in a one-day trip to ReStore (Habitat For Humanity) in London, ON, where we built cupboards and organized and did inventory of safety wear for house-building.
These experiences, particularly the trip to Costa Rica, were transformative learning experiences for me as a teacher. Our ASB group created a collaborative blog, hosted online by Western, that recounts our experiences and our learning. I have also published a short article in Western's twice-yearly teaching Newsletter, Reflections (p.11-12). As I continue to integrate what I have learned from these trips into my future teaching experiences, I will likely write about them at greater length.
To learn a little about service learning, I participated in Western's annual campus-wide program, Western Serves. I led a group of 9 students on a one-day trip to the London Cross Cultural Learner Centre, where we learned about the facilities, stuffed survey envelopes, and painted some of the living space, where new families often stay after relocating to Canada, above the resource centre.
I was selected as a co-leader for the University of Western Ontario's Alternative Spring Break Service learning initiative. Seven groups travel locally and internationally to provide service to, and learn from, their community partners. I traveled to Costa Rica between February 20th and 27th, where my team gave house visits and triage clinics in rural and urban communities.
In preparation for this week-long activity, our team participated in a one-day trip to ReStore (Habitat For Humanity) in London, ON, where we built cupboards and organized and did inventory of safety wear for house-building.
These experiences, particularly the trip to Costa Rica, were transformative learning experiences for me as a teacher. Our ASB group created a collaborative blog, hosted online by Western, that recounts our experiences and our learning. I have also published a short article in Western's twice-yearly teaching Newsletter, Reflections (p.11-12). As I continue to integrate what I have learned from these trips into my future teaching experiences, I will likely write about them at greater length.
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