The first activities of the ERASMUS+ project team promoting learning in the service of the community

Between January and June 2023, the ERASMUS+ project team that promotes learning in the service of the community carried out a series of activities dedicated to the good management and functioning of the Service-Learning: Intersectoral Collaboration Practices for the development of students´ soft skills and socially engaged universities.

 The project is implemented by the University of Bucharest in partnership with four other member universities of the CIVIS Alliance (Autonomous University of Madrid, Aix-Marseille University, National and Capodistrian University of Athens and Sapienza University of Rome).

The coordinating institution of the Service-Learning: Intersectoral Collaboration Practices for the development of students’ soft skills and socially engaged universities project is Eurasia Net, which promotes non-formal education and cultural cooperation in Europe and between Europe and Asia.

The project promotes learning in the service of the community (service-learning, S-L) in higher education and uses an experiential educational method, in which students engage in community service, with the aim of critically reflecting on the experience gained and thus, to develop professionally and personally.

The activities carried out within the Service-Learning: Intersectoral Collaboration Practices for the development of students’ soft skills and socially engaged universities project address human, social and environmental needs from the perspective of social justice and sustainable economy. They are also focused on developing learning in higher education, encouraging civic responsibility and strengthening engagement in the local community.

The project team of the University of Bucharest includes prof. Magdalena Iordache Platis, PhD, lect. Delia-Laura Popescu, PhD, assoc. prof. Marilena Bratu, PhD, prof. Otniel Ioan Bunaciu, PhD, assoc. prof. Cristian Buică-Belciu, PhD, as well as Raluca Amza, responsible for Erasmus.

Project launch meeting

On January 12-13, 2023, the first seminar to launch the transnational project took place. The participants had the opportunity to meet, for the first time, the teams that will work together in the project during the next two years.

For two days, the team members had the opportunity to discuss all the project’s activities, to highlight the challenges faced by each partner separately, but also to establish common goals.

Second transnational meeting

In the second semester since implementation, the KA2 SL-ICP Project is making visible progress. The consortium organized, on April 11 and 12, 2023, the second transnational meeting. The event brought together, in online format, the five partner universities of the project.

The main objectives of the meeting were to strengthen cooperation within the Consortium, review the project methodology and evaluate the progress of the stages, with the aim of facilitating its implementation.

How far have we come with the project?

Between February and June 2023, special attention was paid to the implementation of work package 2, coordinated by the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Its objective was to collect data on current Service-Learning practices, by integrating the experience of students, university staff and representatives of civil organizations.Data collection will allow the team to identify the diversity of Service-Learning practices within the five European partner universities.Also, work package 3, coordinated by the Autonomous University of Madrid, carried out one of the project’s activities. This consisted in organizing a Service-Learning course attended by over 50 professors from European universities. These courses were intended for professors and pedagogical coordinators affiliated to the five partner universities. They were designed to acquaint them with the theoretical aspects of Service-Learning, as well as to promote the integration of this methodology into curricula. The purpose of the course was active learning and civic engagement for students throughout their university careers. You can access some of the course materials here: 

• Key information on Service-Learning.
• What is Service-Learning?
• The design of a Service-Learning project?
• How to carry out a Service-Learning project?
• Template of a Service-Learning project.
• Project design evaluation.
• Small World Initiative.

The next steps aim at consolidating collected data on Service-Learning practices, implementing new Service-Learning projects, organizing events dedicated to promoting student involvement and formulating recommendations on a more effective integration of this pedagogical approach in partner universities.