Course information

The Autumn School provides an opportunity to explore the theory and practice of service learning in a transnational setting. Service learning is an educational approach that has become established at various universities worldwide as part of higher education's third mission. It combines research-based learning with the design and development of related living spaces in civil society. Its primary feature is the combination of scientific research and learning with socio-spatial and everyday challenges, problems, and development perspectives. Another distinctive feature of the seminar is that participants will be students from both UDE and St. Augustine University of Tanzania in Mwanza. The Autumn School will begin with an exploration and deepening of the fundamentals of service learning, providing insights into German and Tanzanian practices in this field. Participants will then work in groups to collaborate with civil society organisations to design and reflect on a service learning project. Each project will address a current social challenge, intertwining reflections from the Global North and Global South. Finally, the results will be presented and discussed. The seminar is designed as a transdisciplinary approach in the field of social sciences. Taking the possibility to transform society as its starting point, it draws on a comprehensive understanding of social engagement. The collaboration between docents and students from the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) and St. Augustine University in Mwanza, Tanzania, creates a transnational space for the exchange of ideas and collaborative learning on service learning. The seminar will be offered in English, thus allowing participants to gain experience in an international scientific context and within the framework of project work. The seminar is part of the DAAD-funded SERVE SDGs project and, as such, is eligible for the UDE sustainability
certificate.