Service learning away and at home: Can students have a global experience in their own backyard?

Research has identified service learning (SL) as a high-impact instructional practice (Celio, Durlak, & Dymnicki, 2011; Warren, 2012) that both increases learning and offers a transformative experience (Kiely, 2005). Global SL additionally develops intercultural competence and encourages students to adopt critical perspectives on power, privilege, and structural inequalities (Hartman & Kiely, 2014). This begs the question: can students have a global SL experience without leaving home? This presentation reports on a qualitative study comparing the impacts of SL on Speech-Language Pathology students participating abroad versus at home. Data include structured written reflections from 31 students that participated in week-long, global SL programs in Guatemala (focus on special education and community health), and 38 students who took an SL course on campus. The on-campus students participated at an early childhood center in a low-income, urban neighborhood where most staff and clients are multicultural/bilingual. Comparative analyses (e.g., Bazeley, 2013) will be applied to student reflections, exploring emerging themes and patterns between groups (global vs. local), and developing data displays (Miles, Huberman, & Saldaña, 2014). Findings will shed light on students’ engagement, learning, and intercultural development resulting from their engagement with diverse communities through SL, either away or at home