Putting Theory into Practice: Incorporating a Community Engagement Model into Online Pre-professional Courses in Legal Studies and Human Resources Management
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v23i2.1448Keywords:
community engagement, service learning, experiential learning, online learning, student perceptions, legal studies, paralegal studies, human resources, human resources managementAbstract
As part of community-engaged educational partnerships, students are paired with community members in instructor-focused activities linked to an academic curriculum. Scholars widely agree that this type of approach can significantly improve the learning experience for students while simultaneously having a positive impact on the community. As faculty in higher education implement this pedagogical tool, it is a natural progression for it to expand into online classrooms. In particular, while there is a growing body of research related to community engagement in online healthcare and science-related fields, less research exists on the incorporation of community engagement in other types of online pre-professional courses. This paper explores student perceptions in online pre-professional undergraduate courses in the legal studies and human resources fields in which community engagement projects were utilized. These experiences should lead to a deeper understanding of the benefits and challenges of community-engaged online classrooms and give guidance for developing future projects.References
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