Steps to Developing Critical Service Learning Projects

After the practitioner gains administrative buy- in, as discussed in Chapter 5, the focus should turn to conducting the critical service learning (CSL) project. In this chapter, the five phases of conducting a CSL project are described. The first step in preplanning is for practitioners to determine the type of group to be developed, the facilitation approach (individual or cofacilitated), and the target audience. It is important to determine whether the group will be integrated into an existing counseling or therapeutic group or a stand- alone group focused specifically on CSL. If practitioners integrate the CSL project into an existing group, they may use the existing facilitators for the group. However, if it is a stand- alone group, practitioners may create an opportunity for cofacilitation of the group using other school- based personnel. Practitioners must also identify the student population they will recruit for the intervention. Work conducted through the Carnegie Mellon University Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence and Education Innovation (n.d.) suggests several considerations for screening group members: considering youth’s prior knowledge, youth’s motivation, the diversity of perspectives, familiarity with one another, and personality types. When considering youth’s prior knowledge, previous experiences, and skills, practitioners must assess the youth’s strengths, skills, and abilities. All youth have strengths that may be utilized in the CSL process. Another consideration is the need to assess youth’s motivation as they may have varying degrees of self- awareness or desire to address community issues. If the goal of the group is to expand students’ abilities to relate to multiple perspectives, practitioners may seek diverse group membership. It is likely that CSL projects will focus on perspective taking and will need to consider diversification as a main priority of the group. Practitioners may also think about students’ familiarity with one another and per¬sonality types (introverted or extraverted) within the group. The initial screening of students requires that practitioners assess students’ social and emotional learning (SEL) needs and skill levels for fit and selection into the group. Students with common SEL needs may be one consideration as practitioners consider the group’s composition. Practitioners must also assess students’ willingness to contrib¬ute to the CSL project and become a part of the group process. Otherwise, some youth may not commit to the overall project.