Service Learning in Stellenbosch: Courses

Course selection

Students on the Service Learning program take course 1 (for 2 credits) plus the Service Learning course (for 5 credits).

Course 1 (Mandatory)
SSA 202/302 (2)
Introduction to History, Politics and Economics
During this course, you will be introduced to South Africa’s unique 20th century history, and the interplay between the country’s political, social and economic issues. In particular, the focus is on South African identities, and how these were and continue to be shaped by the country’s past. At the root of the apartheid project was a sustained attempt to manipulate social identities. Almost 50 years of social engineering cannot be dismissed easily, and continues to influence the future of our democracy. Understanding how the past impacts on the present allows us to better understand the issues and challenges currently facing the country. We therefore commence by exploring South Africa’s political history, focusing on the apartheid era and the transition to democracy. A field trip to Robben Island will contribute to making this history come alive. An assessment of the process of reconciliation following the 1994 elections provides the bridge to a discussion of the project of nation-building, including the debates around national identity construction.

Service Learning Course (Mandatory)
SSA 206/306 (5)
Service Learning and Community Development
The objective of this exciting module is to provide international students with the opportunity to demonstrate their global citizenship through a service learning experience. Students will develop an understanding of the historical background and current issues impacting on community life and problems in South Africa and will experience it first hand through service to a South African community while earning academic credits.

Community service learning is a term that describes the contact between the student and a community of choice where the service learning experience will take place. Students learn while rendering a needed service to the community. The Summer School Service Learning interventions are located in the Kayamandi Township, as part of a project called Kuyasa and on two wine farms just outside Stellenbosch, as part of the Pebbles Project. These projects primarily focus on work with children who are all from backgrounds of abject poverty and whose lives are characterized by impaired bio-psycho-social wellbeing. It therefore provides a very good cross-section of the kinds of difficulties that typify the development environment. These are thus ideal learning and training sites for aspirant community development workers. It holds the potential to equip students with a wide range of skills, needed in a variety of different contexts, outside of the Service Learning program.