CIVIC LEARNING

Coastal Carolina University has been designated by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education as the site for a three-year (2005-8) pilot study of civic learning focused on higher education institutions working to improve high school graduation rates.  Faculty are encouraged to incorporate mentoring children in Horry County Schools as a civic learning component in their regular courses.

Civic learning, also known as service-learning, is a teaching/learning method that connects meaningful community service experiences with academic learning. Service is an integral part of the academic course: service informs course content, and content informs the service.

Coastal Carolina University students in these designated courses are encouraged to serve as mentors and tutors with children in local elementary and middle schools.

Workshops will be held Fall and Spring semesters for faculty interested in incorporating this teaching methodology to their course syllabus.

“…content-rich assignments given to the mentors (e.g., commentaries, papers and cooperative activities) in their university courses… are the most reliable way to link a specific academic discipline to mentoring activities.” 
                 -Dr. John J. Navin, Associate Professor of History, HIST 367

“The students not only become more fluent in the language, they also learn something that could never be taught in the class and that is the power of understanding and making connections with someone of a different cultural background.” 
                 -José Luis Mireles, Instructor of Spanish, SPAN 211