Ageing with Dignity Through Service-Learning—Hong Kong Experience

Abstract

Service-learning is offered at universities with the aim to provide students an experiential learning pedagogy that integrates meaningful community service with academic study and reflections to enrich students’ learning experience. The learning process will not only enhance students’ sense of civic responsibility and engagement, but also benefit the community at large. It is learning through engagement in services by incorporating academic learning, service experience and reflection in learning, and demonstrating positive outcomes on personal development, including improved skills in critical thinking, problem solving, communication, enhanced sense of social responsibility and a deeper understanding of learning concept in the community. Service-learning in a health promotion subject will develop students’ ability to apply principles and concepts of health behaviour from the classroom into a community setting, in which the collaboration with non-government organisations provides students the opportunity to engage in meaningful community service to the recipients, under the guidance of teachers and site staff. Students are expected to reflect critically on academic contents and civic engagement during service-learning. The most important objective of the health promotion subject is to instil in students a strong sense of empathy, social responsibility and professionalism. Results have indicated that students have learned different skills and overcome most of the challenges when communicating with the older adults. Through serving the elderly, students learn on how to promote health with dignity in a community setting through the application of principles and concepts of health behaviour to motivate older adults to adopt a healthy lifestyle and self-management of chronic conditions.