Fall 2007
New Book Highlights Service Opportunites in Leadership Program
In a new book titled Educating for Democracy: Preparing Undergraduates for Responsible Political Engagement, the Hart Leadership Program's Service Opportunities in Leadership (SOL) course is featured as an exemplary program that helps college students become interested in political participation. SOL is highlighted for emphasizing political learning through a "pedagogy of engagement," that includes an immersion experience in a community, a rigorous process of critical reflection, and a capstone course that integrates concepts of politics, leadership and policy design. The book is the culmination of a three-year, national study called the Political Engagement Project (PEP), sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Involving programs at 21 universities and colleges across the country, the study examined innovative educational efforts that have focused on the political development of undergraduate students. Educating for Democracy highlights five pedagogical strategies found to be most effective, including core elements of the SOL pedagogy such as research service-learning, internships, critical reflection, and peer discussion and critique.
The authors of Educating for Democracy found that the American higher education system pays little attention to political learning, even though it has been shown to contribute to the development of students' general academic skills and to their political understanding.
The SOL program is mentioned throughout the book. On a Carnegie Foundation website that supplements the book, three of five examples of student work come from SOL students and include excerpts from their research projects and critical reflection essays. The book is designed for faculty and administrators who wish to promote the principles of the PEP. With the book's release, the next step of the project is working with faculty members to disseminate the lessons learned from the PEP, using Educating for Democracy as a pivotal tool in the process.
-Iza Wojceichowska
Click here to view an article on Educating for Democracy in the Christian Science Monitor.
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