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Home > Psychology > Department News > ARTICLE DATE: 10-16-02 | |
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DANA COLLEGE STUDENTS GO BACK TO PRESCHOOLNew service learning project lets students put theory into practice Like any college instructor, Dana College’s Dr. Barbara Zimmerman spends a lot of class time talking about theory. In her child psychology class, Dr. Zimmerman’s lectures include everything from physical and motor development to the latest thought in how gender differences affect development. But Dr. Zimmerman knows that theory alone can not completely prepare future teachers and psychologists to deal with 15 rambunctious and unique children at a time. So taking a cue from Dana’s commitment to hands-on learning and community service, Dr. Zimmerman instituted a new requirement in her class: 15 hours of service-learning at Blair preschools and the new Head Start program. “It’s something that benefits child psychology students and the community,” Dr. Zimmerman said. “It lets students see how we can apply what they’ve learned about kids to real kids, and it helps sometimes understaffed schools do the things they’ve always wanted to do, but didn’t have enough hands to accomplish.” Dr. Zimmerman tested the service-learning component last year and
found it so successful, she expanded it for this year’s class. “Last year it was very, very good,” Korth said. “I was very impressed with the Dana students. They were involved with the children, and the children worked well with them. The Dana students were exposed to different types of child personalities, and many times the students helped me out by working with some children so I could focus on another group.” To complete the project, students must work at least 15 hours at either Blair Preschool, JOY Preschool or Blair Head Start. Students keep a log of what activities they do with the children, along with observations they make related to class material. Dr. Zimmerman said she hopes students will take away from the project more than just a better understanding of child psychology. “I think it helps them to see they can make an impact in their society, that they can make a big difference,” she said. “And they can see how concepts — in any class — can affect their real life.” Dana College is a private, liberal arts institution that currently
enrolls approximately 600 students. The campus is located on 150
acres overlooking the Missouri River Valley in Blair, Neb. Dana grants
bachelor’s degrees in more than 20 liberal arts, business,
education and pre-professional programs, with an emphasis on personalized
teaching from experienced and dedicated faculty. Dana is a college
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and its athletic teams
compete in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. For more information contact: Sarah Cavanah Dr. Barbara Zimmerman |
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