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Investigating the Impacts of an Experiential Service‐Learning Course
Author(s) -
Kassabgy Nagwa,
ElDin Yasmine Salah
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
tesol journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.468
H-Index - 14
eISSN - 1949-3533
pISSN - 1056-7941
DOI - 10.1002/tesj.92
Subject(s) - experiential learning , psychology , service learning , custodians , context (archaeology) , pedagogy , mathematics education , foreign language , medical education , linguistics , medicine , paleontology , philosophy , biology
This study investigated the impacts of an undergraduate experiential service‐learning course on the development, attitudes, and perceptions of the co‐learners involved in the experience. The context of the study was the American University in Cairo ( AUC ), and the participants in both groups were Egyptian native speakers of Arabic. The participants in the first group ( N = 74) were undergraduate students enrolled in LING 268: Principles and Practice of Teaching English as a Foreign Language ( TEFL ). Participants in the second group ( N = 19) were AUC workers (e.g., custodians, security guards, and housekeepers). The researchers used qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis to answer the research questions. Although the findings showed that the service‐learning experience had both positive and negative impacts on both groups, the study provides evidence that service‐learning is a valuable pedagogy that is worth implementing in English as a foreign language ( EFL ) contexts.