Student Reflections on a Watershed Service Learning Project Reveal Four Key Findings

Chemistry students at Westminster College have partnered with a local watershed group for the last three years to test sites being treated for abandoned mine drainage. Students find this service learning project to be a powerful learning experience, and a review of the student self-reflection essays reveals why this is the case. Four key observations surface from an evaluation of the essays. The most significant finding is the critical role that positive interaction with the community partner has on the student experience. Other themes emerging from the reflection essays include "seeing" results, unplanned learning, and the relevance of the discipline in the community. Quotes from the student self-reflections, with support from the literature, provide evidence for the results. While the findings presented here are based on an advanced chemistry lab course, the information is relevant to all disciplines. The observations should be useful for faculty members designing a service learning project or planning its assessment.