Libraries have an important role in student’s lives that will benefit them long after graduation. Though usually overlooked, libraries provide resources to students that will prepare them for their chosen profession. Anne Marie Gruber says in her article, Real World Research: A Qualitative Study of Faculty Perceptions of the Library’s Role in Service-Learning, by providing Service-learning (SL) opportunities for students to improve on their writing, speaking, critical thinking, and intercultural competency, students will develop skills that will translate into their chosen career. Service-learning is an approach educational institutes use, that allow students to perform community services that align with their learning outcomes.
“Librarians are well-positioned to help students prepare for service-learning opportunities by gathering evidence-based information about the communities in which such learning takes place (Gruber).”
Students that use service-learning have opportunities to meet and work with potential employers, allowing them to get hands on experience and make connections.
For the Service-learning to be most affective, teaching faculty and library staff would work together and collaborate with one another. The benefit of this collaboration, is the library assistance to provide the chance for students to develop critical thinking skills, acquire new and more information, use affective research skills, and be able to ask librarians questions.
Gruber, Anne Marie. “Real-World Research: A Qualitative Study of Faculty Perceptions of the Library’s Role in Service-Learning.” Portal: Libraries & the Academy, vol. 18, no. 4, Oct. 2018, pp. 671–692.
"Service Learning Definition." University of Central Oklahoma Service Learning Definition
Kimberly, I liked how you explored the use of libraries as something that students can learn from. For students like us, libraries are also a place to gain learning experience, and service-learning is a great way to highlight that.
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