Celebrating 10 Years of Pedagogy in Health Promotion : An Invitation to Advance the Field of Community Engagement and Service-Learning

Defining Community Engagement and Service-Learning

Over the past 10 years, this journal has been a platform for pedagogy related to academic community engagement and service-learning (CE/SL), highlighting innovative and effective instructional course-based practices as well as thoughtful considerations for meaningful and ethical engagement for health promotion students and community partners. SL is “a form of experiential education in which students engage in activities that address human and community needs, together with structured opportunities for reflection designed to achieve desired learning outcomes” (Jacoby, 1996, p. 1). SL pedagogy has evolved and transformed over the years, aspiring for a more equitable approach toward campus-community partnerships, whereby community partners’ needs, voices, and input are elevated throughout students’ learning endeavors and experiences. Critical service-learning (CSL) pedagogy prioritizes social justice and collaborative efforts to transform students as “engaged and active citizens” and engages students to understand root causes of social problems as well as systems of power and concepts of privilege and oppression (Mitchell, 2008, p. 52). Tyler Derreth et al. (2021) state “as the educators for the next generation of public health leaders, we must design curricula that can foster skills in community engagement and critical reflection core elements in critical service-learning alongside public health expertise to prepare our students for their complex work ahead. CSL gives us a framework to support our students’ skills, commit to justice, and improve our communities’ health” (p. 356).

The term community engagement (CE) emphasizes the importance of mutually beneficial relationships and preparing students for lifelong civic engagement. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education (n.d.) defines community engagement as:

. . . collaboration between institutions of higher education and their larger communities (local, regional/state, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity. The purpose of community engagement is the partnership of college and university knowledge and resources with those of the public and private sectors to enrich scholarship, research, and creative activity; enhance curriculum, teaching, and learning; prepare educated, engaged citizens; strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility; address critical societal issues; and contribute to the public good.

Community-Engaged Learning and Teaching: Key Competencies

Campus Compact, a nonprofit, member-based, organization dedicated to promoting civic and community engagement within colleges and universities, provides resources to build knowledge and skills around best practice CE. Campus Compact (2021a) describe competencies, associated with Community-Engaged Learning and Teaching, as “knowledge, skills, and critical commitments that must be mobilized by community engagement professionals to effectively facilitate curricular community engagement learning experiences that are beneficial to students and community” (para. 1). Within the area of learning and teaching, competencies exist for foundational knowledge of CE pedagogy, course development and facilitation, principles of partnership, and assessment. In this editorial, I touch upon a few ways in which learning and teaching competencies have been discussed in Pedagogy in Health Promotion over the years.

Community-Engaged Course Development and Facilitation: Critical Thinking and Reflection

A variety of studies published in Pedagogy in Health Promotion highlight the importance of structured reflection and critical thinking exercises for students involved in CE/SL; these are key competencies indicated by Campus Compact (2021a). Gren et al. (2020) point out that “debriefings and reflection are critical mechanisms for students to connect new knowledge to previous experience, broaden their world view, and consider how to use this information in their professions” (p. 45). Lohr et al. (2022) found that class time designated for talking about and processing assigned readings and SL experiences led to students developing critical consciousness and a deeper understanding of health inequities and strengthened students’ intentions for advocacy work.

Recommendations for CE/SL reflection assignments and activities are provided by contributing authors. For example, Bill and Casola (2016) recommend continuous reflection opportunities for students, making sure that reflection assignments are aligned with course learning outcomes. Batada (2018) describes the use of contemplative exercises that involve asking students questions about their identity and views toward others (Who Are You/Who Are They?). Batada states this reflection exercise has been “effective in assisting students in noticing diversity and judgment and in developing a sense of how their individual engagement may address the root causes of societal problems such as health disparities” (p. 73). Baer et al. (2020) recommend students explore connections between SL and university mission through critical reflection.

Community-Engaged Course Development and Facilitation: Supporting Students

Campus Compact (2021a) identifies the provision of student support as a competency, specifically support to students who experience challenges and conflicts that may arise during CE. Several contributing authors observe how CE/SL courses can be an uncomfortable and unfamiliar space for students. de Groot et al. (2015) describe how students expressed concern about upcoming interactions with individuals at the site. Rahn et al. (2018) found students reported unease, nervousness, and a lack of confidence regarding their SL experience, and Leroux et al. (2024) discuss students’ uncertainty, anxiety, and apprehension about the task of doing “real world” work with a community partner. Leroux et al. (2024) found that engaging in community work helped students to process through their discomfort and recognize the value of relationships with their group members and community partners.

Community-Engaged Partnership Essentials

Informative processes and positive student outcomes associated with CE/SL would not be possible without the collaboration, support, and contributions of community partners. Campus Compact indicates competencies for working with community partners to include: “knowledge, skills, experiences, and critical commitments that must be mobilized by community engagement professionals to ethically and effectively engage in equity-focused, mutually beneficial community engagement experiences” (Campus Compact, 2021b, para. 1). Healthy and productive partnerships involve campus and community partners sharing decision-making power and defining problems, goals, and outcomes together. Successful partnerships focus on community assets, whereby community partners’ strengths, skills, and knowledge are validated and integral to the partnership (Campus Compact, 2021b).

Contributing authors to Pedagogy in Health Promotion write about the importance of equity-focused partnerships. Ratnayake and Lederer (2024) call on universities to aim for “truly equal partnerships” and to dispel the notion that universities and academics hold all the knowledge and resources (power). Building and nurturing community partnerships requires committed faculty and adequate time (Bill & Casola, 2016). Dedication to mutually beneficial partnerships is key (Comeau et al., 2019), as is making sure the university and partner organization’s missions and priorities are in alignment (Ezeonwu, 2020). Supporting co-creation efforts and having regular and frequent communication with community partners are essential (Early & Lasker, 2018; Felter & Baumann, 2019). Batada et al., (2022) advise there should be thoughtful opportunities for students and community partners to interact throughout the semester, such interaction should be purposeful and not burdensome to the partner, staff, or clients.

Incorporating community partners’ experiences and perspectives in CE/SL activities and outcomes is necessary (Comeau et al., 2019). Ratnayake and Lederer (2024) point out how students often receive an orientation to CE, but community partners do not, and may not receive explicit information regarding expected time demands or the needs pertaining to student supervision and training to complete the SL project. Sharing SL pedagogy with partners and inquiring about their capacity and desired support fosters a successful academic-community partnership. Involving community partners in goal setting, instruction, reflection, discussion, and assessment is recommended (Campus Compact, 2021b). Ratnayake and Lederer (2024) call for universities to offer public health-related best practices, training, and resources to community partners, as efforts to bring value and benefit to the partnership.

Conclusion

In the past 10 years, Pedagogy in Health Promotion has published a variety of articles on CE/SL pedagogy, providing examples as well as direction for meeting best practice guidelines and competencies. CE learning and teaching requires developing intentional learning outcomes, facilitating critical thinking and reflection practices, and providing support to students to work in and with communities, to highlight just a few important competencies. Planning and implementing CE programs requires a commitment to community partners, in addition to students, emphasizing mutual benefit to achieve equitable partnerships.

I encourage readers to explore the CE/SL literature highlighted in Pedagogy in Health Promotion to uncover valuable lessons learned as well as gain insights into research and practice gaps in this field. Opportunities for exploration include evaluation methods beyond student reflection to capture outcomes for students, faculty, community partners, and communities (Lohr et al., 2022; Ratnayake & Lederer, 2024); measuring advantages gained (i.e., mutual benefits) for community partners involved in CE; and understanding ways to create sustainable academic-community educational partnerships (Comeau et al., 2019), to name a few. The editorial board encourages our readers to contribute to the scholarship of this high impact teaching practice. There are many lessons yet to learn. Please accept this invitation to join in this work.