Teaching Ethics through Service Learning

Abstract

Engaging students in the surrounding community is often the goal of nursing classes, especially those that focus on community. Although ethics may be one of the most important subjects in nursing education, teaching it is challenging. An exemplar is used to discuss how a service learning assignment was used to demonstrate and evaluate students' understanding of the ethical principle of beneficence. A properly designed service learning assignment provided students the opportunity to practice nursing as a caring art with each of Johnson's five distinctive practices. It gives them the occasion to do the right thing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]