Community Engaged Learning Research Assignment
mission statement: Putting God above everything and increasing knowledge of humans through learning, justice and faith write a two page reflection that connects in-class and out of the class experience responding to the following:
How did community engaged learning experience help you to connect to the mission statement above? How did the community engaged learning experience in this course impact your personal, intellectual, civic and/or professional development?
Notes (might help you understand what I did):
Class focused on exercise and its benefits. I volunteered at an elementary school for 20 hours and helped the coach with recess.
-kindergarten to 7th graders
-recess monitor
-there were always four teachers plus 2 staff members plus me
-monitor the play ground area where kids were playing
-making sure that they are being respectful towards each other and behaving
-safety was a huge concern
-if classmates got hurt, the whole class was punished and didn't get recess the next day
-interesting to see the cliques were formed from kindergarten onwards
-there were popular kids, loners etc
-teachers usually huddled together
-didn't micromanage
-i was hovering over them
-i retrieved the balls if it went over the fence
-easier to manage younger kids because if someone pushed them, they'd cry and the kid who pushed would apologize
-i wish i could 've volunteered where there was a real need. well funded school and they still had gym classes. hated driving to the city where the school is located.
-mostly, hispanic students. some cannot speak english and staff helps them
-some kids asked me to play with them bc they didn't have anyone to play with
Community Engaged Learning
(Student’s name)
Social Sciences
(Institutional affiliation)
Community Engaged Learning
The community engaged learning experience helped me to connect with the mission because having been exposed to the different scenarios and challenges in the world, I knew why God should be on top of everything. In today’s world, people are becoming more aware and they try their best to contribute in their own ways. I try to do the same and share what I have with the world in terms of knowledge and understanding. Others may think that they are the only ones who benefit from this interaction, but it is a learning experience for me as well and it keeps me grounded. The experience also contributes to my intellectual ability because it is a story I can relate to in certain life situations and everyone will always have something to teach.
Volunteering in a kindergarten during recess can be tiring, but fun, even if there will always be safety concerns. I observed how kids behaved in the playground area, and they had to be careful, because if anyone got hurt, the entire class would be accountable for it. It was nice to see that school cliques will always be there, because it was easy for me to see who the popular kids were, the loners, the intelligent ones, and the nerds.
Normally, teachers are grouped together, so they can help each other handle recess, because kids are getting noisy and they run around. The thing I liked about the teachers is that they did not micromanage and let the kids play on their own because they know it is recess and the kids want their freedom. I helped in retrieving the ball if it went over the fence and I could say that the younger kids are easier to manage because all they have to do is cry to get an apology. This makes me realize that innocence plays a big role in getting someone’s sympathy, especially if it is so...