A professor’s reflection on the value of student reflections in a service-learning research project within a university science course

Abstract

A well-established university Biology course that addresses among its several cores the impact of indoor air pollution on human health, involved 29 undergraduate students in a dynamic service-learning research project.  The students were prepared academically through intensive course lectures and in-class training then guided into the community to gauge its awareness of indoor air pollution.  The students took with them into the community especially designed brochures that highlighted the health effects of eight major indoor air pollutants and questionnaires that  community participants were asked to complete anonymously.  In addition to teaching the course and training the students in service-learning practices, the professor’s role included: (a) being available to respond to students’ questions and concerns for the duration of the service-learning research activity; (b) directing data compilation, analysis, and storage; and (c) categorizing, assessing, and reflecting on the students’ learning journeys, the last of which is of immediate relevance to this publication.  The students submitted their reflections under the headings of lessons learned, challenges faced, and recommendations, as part of the course grade.  These student reflections indicated that the students acquired a new understanding of the community, their course material, and themselves.  These reflections also effected the professor’s reflection presented here.  The professor reflected on the students’ learning the value of investing in three “O’s†of good research practices: originality, objectivity, and openness; and on the students’ earning the rewards of three “A’s†of meaningful service: altruism, awareness, and appreciation.