Laura Dammer Hess-Handout 1.pdf

Reflections Requirement Overview
“Action without reflection leads to burnout, reflection without action leads to cynicism” -­‐Albert Einstein
What Is Reflection and Why Is It Important
The Reflections Requirement is an essential part of the Community Engagement Scholars Program
because it is the bridge between action and theory. It engages participants in conscious, intentional,
and critical evaluation of their service experiences. Reflection in the Scholars Program asks you to
consider the meaning and purpose of your community work and how your work affects and is affected
by broader social and political contexts.
What are Themes
The Scholars Program has six core themes to explore for your reflections:
• Ethic of Service: What is your philosophy and approach to community work
• Sense of Self: How do you see yourself in the world
• Agency: What is your capacity to act and to create change
• Diversity, Power and Privilege: What are the privileges that you carry and how does your
identity impact your community work
• Collaboration and Community Building: What is the value of building a community and how can
we work together towards a common goal
• Integration and Contextualization: How do all of your academic and community work
experiences connect
What are the forms for reflections
Throughout the themes there are a variety of forms and methods you can use including critical essays,
creative production, persuasive writing and more. Challenge yourself to choose different methods and
use the reflections as an opportunity to have meaningful conversations, be creative, step out of your
comfort zone and learn about your community work in a deeper and more holistic way.
Who is the audience for reflections
Every reflection assignment asks you to identify a person to share your work with and have them
respond to it. Knowing your audience helps you to make decisions about what information you should
include, how you should arrange that information, and what kind of supporting details will be necessary
for the reader to understand what you are presenting. Read each assignment carefully for instructions
on how to choose a reader and how he/she should submit the reader response form.
What is the process for creating reflective work
Each reflection assignment requires a process. For many of the assignments, there is “pre-­‐work,” in the
form of required readings, additional research on an issue, or an interview with a community partner.
For the Ethic of Service and Diversity, Power and Privilege assignments, you are required to revise your
first draft based on your conversation with a CESP advisor and submit a final draft.

Moodle
The Community Engagement Scholars Program uses Moodle as its medium for distributing and
collecting reflection assignments. When you meet with a CESP advisor to review your Ethic of Service
assignment, you will review the Moodle site and how to use it. If you have any questions or concerns
about how to use the Moodle site, please email cesp@umn.edu.