Abstract
A community service-learning curriculum was established to give students opportunities to understand the interrelationship between family and community health, the differences between community and hospital medicine, and to be able to identify and solve community health problems. Students were divided into small groups to participate in community health works such as home visits etc. under supervision. This study was designed to evaluate the community service-learning program and to understand how students’ attitude and learning activities affected students’ satisfaction. The results revealed that most medical students had a positive attitude towards social service and citizenship but were conservative towards taking the role to serve people in the community. Students had achieved what they were required to learn especially the training in communication skills and ability to identify social issues. Students’ attitude towards social service did not affect their opinions on the quality of the program and subjective rating on their achievement. The quality of the program was related to the quality of learning rated by the students.
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Acknowledgements
This study was supported by a grant from the National Science Council, Taiwan, ROC (NSC91-2516-S-002-001). The authors wish to thank Yin-Li Tsao for her assistance in this study. We also thank all community tutors and staff members who participated in the community service-learning program.
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Appendix
Appendix
Social Attitude Scale (SAS)
Citizenship |
Sense of personal efficacy in affecting community issues |
Most people can have an impact on community problems |
I can solve the problems of my community |
I play an important part in improving my community |
I do not have time to help others (R) |
Belief that the community itself can be effective in solving its problems |
I think social problems should be solved by efforts from the community |
Community is capable of solving its own problems |
Community should provide social services to its people |
Feeling connected to the community |
We should do good things for our community |
Social problems are not my concern (R) |
I should reach out to serve people |
Locus of community problems |
People who need social services have needs based on personal factors |
Generally speaking, one’s fortune is determined by one’s self |
Social justice and political structure |
Striving for greater social justice is something I can do to improve society |
Solving social problems is not government’s responsibility (R) |
The most important part of community service is providing service on an individual basis |
The most important part of community service is in correcting public policy |
Tolerance |
I feel uncomfortable working with different people |
Personal gain |
I obtain valuable skills and experiences from community service |
I develop leadership skills through community service |
Personal value |
I can influence public policy |
I often volunteer to help people |
I can present community leadership |
I am building a career to help people |
Program Characteristic Scale (PCS)
Ability Scale (AS)
Reflection/discussion |
Discussion about the service provided |
Discussion of learning experiences with faculty |
Sharing feelings with others |
Analyzing community problems |
Relating classroom knowledge to community service |
Reporting service activities |
Reflection/writing |
Daily journal writing |
Faculty response to journal entries |
Writing about projects assigned |
Placement quality |
Imposing important responsibility |
Participating in challenging tasks |
Requiring important decision making |
Having interesting assignments |
Personal participation |
Opportunities to talk with people receiving services |
Being in accordance with professional interests |
Performing a variety of tasks |
Gaining appreciation for the service performed |
Making actual contributions |
Implementation of ideas without restriction |
Obtaining challenging experiences |
Community voice |
Recipient involved in service activities planning |
Projects consider needs of the community |
Application |
Applying classroom knowledge to service projects |
Applying service achievements to classroom knowledge |
Diversity |
Working with different people |
Leadership skills |
Feeling responsible for others |
Knowing where to find information |
Knowing whom to contact to get things done |
Ability to lead a group |
Communication skills |
Active participation in community affairs |
Good communication with others |
Often discussion on various issues with others |
Good listening skills |
Able to speak in public |
Team work |
Respecting different opinions from others |
Able to compromise |
Capable of making moral or ethical judgments |
Being tolerant of different people |
Being empathetic to all points of view |
Able to work with others |
Thinking about others |
Ability to see consequences |
Able to foresee consequences of actions |
Able to think about future |
Critical thinking skills |
Thinking critically |
Ability to identify social issues |
Able to identify social issues and concerns |
Action skills |
Able to take action |
Effective in accomplishing goals |
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Leung, KK., Liu, WJ., Wang, WD. et al. Factors Affecting Students’ Evaluation in a Community Service-Learning Program. Adv in Health Sci Educ 12, 475–490 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-006-9019-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-006-9019-1