Community-Based Learning courses are those in which students take the knowledge and skills learned in a class and apply them to solve a community problem. Faculty and community partners work together to give students projects that require active learning.
Community-based learning opportunities range from a one- time service experience within a course to more fully integrated community-based learning designated courses. A community-based learning course has all the components of a regular course – students attend class, read textbooks, write papers and take tests. But in a community-based learning course, students are also asked to put course material to practice by participating in a community service project that directly relates to what they are learning in class. Some students even participate in community-based learning courses abroad.
Through community-based learning, students learn course concepts and theories in a powerful, experiential manner that promotes critical analysis of complex social issues and cultivation of skills necessary for engagement with diverse populations.
Successful completion of a community-based learning course fulfills the general education requirement for experiential learning.