Start Date
7-6-2013 5:25 PM
End Date
7-6-2013 6:35 PM
Description
This paper discusses opportunities for and suitability of Service Learning as a teaching methodology in formal and non-formal settings in rural mainland China. It describes how Service Learning aligns with and fulfills goals of China’s national curriculum reforms and fosters values and skills useful to rural Chinese children and youth in improving their own lives and communities. Examples of Service Learning projects in rural Shanxi and Guangdong Provinces supported by the Rural China Education Foundation (RCEF) illustrate the potential of Service Learning as a powerful framework for curriculum development and teaching. The Rural China Education Foundation, founded in 2005, works with rural education workers in schools as well as community centers and summer camps to facilitate Service Learning with primary and secondary school-aged rural students. The models for, and challenges of, training and supporting teachers to facilitate Service Learning with quality and sustainability are key to its development in China. Ongoing efforts of the Rural China Education Foundation to partner with schools, local rural community organizations, and NGOs provide insight into the state of Service Learning promotion and implementation in mainland China. The goal of the paper is to share practical information for, and instigate mutual experience sharing with, Service Learning education practitioners working in disadvantaged education settings, such as NGOs and university-based volunteer groups that implement Service Learning projects serving similar populations of children and youth.
Recommended Citation
Geng, D. (2013, June). Service learning in rural China. Paper presented at the 4th Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Service-Learning: Service-Learning as a Bridge from Local to Global: Connected world, Connected future, Hong Kong and Guangzhou, China.
Included in
Service learning in rural China
This paper discusses opportunities for and suitability of Service Learning as a teaching methodology in formal and non-formal settings in rural mainland China. It describes how Service Learning aligns with and fulfills goals of China’s national curriculum reforms and fosters values and skills useful to rural Chinese children and youth in improving their own lives and communities. Examples of Service Learning projects in rural Shanxi and Guangdong Provinces supported by the Rural China Education Foundation (RCEF) illustrate the potential of Service Learning as a powerful framework for curriculum development and teaching. The Rural China Education Foundation, founded in 2005, works with rural education workers in schools as well as community centers and summer camps to facilitate Service Learning with primary and secondary school-aged rural students. The models for, and challenges of, training and supporting teachers to facilitate Service Learning with quality and sustainability are key to its development in China. Ongoing efforts of the Rural China Education Foundation to partner with schools, local rural community organizations, and NGOs provide insight into the state of Service Learning promotion and implementation in mainland China. The goal of the paper is to share practical information for, and instigate mutual experience sharing with, Service Learning education practitioners working in disadvantaged education settings, such as NGOs and university-based volunteer groups that implement Service Learning projects serving similar populations of children and youth.