Opportunities in E-Service-Learning: Student Perceptions of a Real-World Service Learning Experience in an Online,Asynchronous Health Promotion Course

Abstract

As more students move to distance learning, applying service learning in the “virtual” classroom, e-service-learning, offers unique opportunities. This study’s purpose was to evaluate students’ perceptions of service learning in an asynchronous public health course. The study participants were undergraduate students assigned to work in teams to plan, execute, and evaluate a health education session related to diabetes prevention or management, which was presented during a local employer’s monthly virtual wellness webinar. Students completed an anonymous, voluntary 12-question survey to gage their perceptions of the service learning project, online format, and preparatory tasks. Participants completed the survey 1 month prior to and immediately following the e-service-learning session. Descriptive and parametric statistical analyses were performed. The pre-post-survey response rate was 48% to 52% in a course of 23 students. Findings from this study indicate that students valued e-service-learning, agreeing that the experience will benefit their future career, improved their knowledge compared to a traditional course, increased their interest in health promotion programming, and that the online/web format of the course was NOT a barrier to their learning in the context of the e-service-learning project (question responses averaged 3.6-4.2 on scale: 5 = Strongly Agree and 1 = Strongly Disagree). Students reported stronger agreement that the service learning assignment increased their interest in this field of study (p = .0242) and the online/web format of the course was NOT a barrier to learning (p = .0387) after completing the service learning project compared to before. e-Service-learning presents a mechanism to increase student engagement and deepen learning in online public health coursework.