Human development and community engagement through service-learning : the capability approach and public good in education / Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa

This book establishes community engagement and service-learning as pathways to advancing human development and common good. Using the human development and capability approach as normative frameworks, with South Africa as a frame of reference, the author investigates the theoretical contributions and ultimate benefits of university-community partnerships. In doing so, this book demonstrates that three interrelated capabilities – affiliation, common good professionals and local citizenship – are developed through community engagement and service-learning. Subsequently, the notion of transformative change through community engagement and service-learning is illuminated, particularly when operating within the context of power differentials, inequality and extreme poverty. This book will be of interest and value to students and scholars of service-learning, and its implications for partnerships between universities and external communities. Foreword 6 Beyond the Normative Order in African Higher Education Studies 6 Acknowledgements 11 Contents 13 Abbreviations 15 List of Tables 16 1: Community Engagement and Service-Learning in Higher Education: A General Overview 17 The Aims of this Book 21 Structure of the Book 22 Terminologies 23 Community Engagement 24 Service-Learning 24 Scholarship of Engagement 25 The Concept of Community 26 The Notion of CE and SL Partnership 27 Capabilities 28 Human Development 28 Social Justice 29 Public Good and Common Good 30 Higher Education: Human Development and the Common Good 31 Higher Education’s Contribution to Social Justice 32 Higher Education’s Contribution to Citizenship Formation 34 Higher Education Developing Common Good Professionals 35 CE and SL as Pathways to Advancing Human Development and the Common Good 37 CE and SL Advancing Social Justice 38 CE and SL Contributing to Citizenship Formation and Common Good Professionals 40 Cultivating Students’ Citizenship and Common Good Professional Capacities 40 CE and SL Promoting Engaged and Active Citizenship in Communities 43 CE and SL Pathway and Gateway to Academic Citizenship 45 Introducing the Study 49 Institutional Context 49 Selected CE/SL Programmes/Activities 51 Social Work CE/SL 51 Nursing CE/SL 52 Humanities (Bachelor of Social Sciences) CE/SL 53 Study Sample 53 Interview Protocols 54 References 62 2: Community Engagement and Service-Learning in African and South African Higher Education: A Question of Relevance—A Historical and Current Sketch 70 Neglecting African Higher Education: Decline of Social Purposes 74 Revitalising the Developmental Role of African Higher Education 75 Challenges Facing the Developmental Role of African Universities 77 CE and SL in South African Higher Education 80 Towards a Scholarship of Engagement and the Common Good 82 The Scholarship of Engagement in South African Higher Education 85 CE and SL Discourses in South Africa 86 Conclusion 87 References 88 3: Human Development and Capability Approach: Alternative Conceptual Frameworks for Community Engagement and Service-Learning 93 HD and CA Conceptual Justification for CE and SL 94 Human Development 95 The Human Development Processes and Values in a CE and SL Context 97 Empowerment and Participation in CE and SL 97 Public Deliberation and Reasoning in CE and SL Partnerships 100 A Case for “Participatory Parity” and “Participatory Capabilities” in CE and SL 102 Sustainability of CE and SL Programmes and Outcomes 105 Equity in CE and SL 105 Diversity in CE and SL 107 A Capability Approach to CE and SL 108 Capabilities and Functionings in CE and SL 109 The Notion of Well-being in CE and SL 112 Conversion Factors in CE and SL 113 Agency as a Foundation of CE and SL 114 Uncovering Adaptive Preference in CE and SL 117 Summing Up 119 References 120 4: Human Development Processes and Values: Community Engagement and Service-Learning Spaces 126 Leaders, Administrators, Lecturers, Students and Community Members’ Voices 126 Meet the Participants 127 Institutional Perspectives: Documents, Leaders, Administrators and Lectures 127 HD Processes and Values in CE and SL 127 CE and SL Definitional Dimensions and Implications for HD Processes and Values 128 Empowerment, Participation, Agency and Sustainability: Layers of Complexity 132 Students’ Perspectives and Experiences 138 HD Processes and Values in CE and SL 138 Students’ Perspectives of Empowerment in CE and SL 139 Students’ Perspectives of the Notion of Participation in CE and SL 142 Community Perspectives and Experiences 145 HD Processes and Values in CE and SL 145 Summary of Themes 152 References 155 5: Affiliation: The Architectonic Capability in Community Engagement and Service-Learning 160 Multi-layered, Architectonic and Contested Capability for Affiliation in CE and SL 161 A Capability for Affiliation in CE and SL: Lecturers’ Perspective 163 Student–Student Affiliation 163 Lecturers–Students Affiliation 171 Student–Community Member Affiliation 174 Lecturers–Community Members Affiliation 177 A Capability for Affiliation: Students’ Perspectives 180 Affiliation between Students and Community Members 180 Student–Student Affiliation: The Promises and Pitfalls of Group Work? 183 A Capability for Affiliation: Community Members’ Perspectives 187 Community Members’ Affiliation with Lecturers and Students 187 The Architectonic Nature of the Capability for Affiliation in and through CE and SL 190 References 194 6: Common Good Professionals and Citizenship Capabilities: Community Engagement and Service-Learning Approaches 198 Students’ Common Good and Citizenship Capabilities 199 Informed Vision and Awareness of Social and Collective Struggle 200 Emotional Reflexivity and Recognition of Power and Privilege 207 Recognising Community Members’ Agency or a Sense of Privilege versus Being Underprivileged? 212 Critical Examination, Narrative Imagination and Local Citizenship 215 Students’ Narrative Imagination 218 Students’ Local Citizenship 221 Students’ Critical Thinking 223 Common Good Attitude and Thinking versus Instrumental Values 226 Students’ Common Good Attitude and Thinking 226 Students’ Instrumental-Credential Values 228 References 232 7: Transformative Change and Partial Justice: Community Engagement and Service-Learning—Possibilities and Limitations 236 CE and SL Possibilities 237 CE and SL’s Transformative Limits 241 Constraining Participatory Capabilities and Parity 241 Neo-liberalism’s Influences on CE and SL 243 Partial Justice in and through CE and SL 247 Removing Remediable Injustices 247 References 249 8: Conclusion: Human Development and the Common Good—Implications for Higher Education, Community Engagement and Service-Learning 253 Traditional Dominant Framing of CE and SL 254 Re-framing CE and SL as Human Development and the Common Good Projects 257 References 265 Index 268 Front Matter ....Pages i-xix Community Engagement and Service-Learning in Higher Education: A General Overview (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 1-53 Community Engagement and Service-Learning in African and South African Higher Education: A Question of Relevance—A Historical and Current Sketch (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 55-77 Human Development and Capability Approach: Alternative Conceptual Frameworks for Community Engagement and Service-Learning (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 79-111 Human Development Processes and Values: Community Engagement and Service-Learning Spaces (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 113-146 Affiliation: The Architectonic Capability in Community Engagement and Service-Learning (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 147-184 Common Good Professionals and Citizenship Capabilities: Community Engagement and Service-Learning Approaches (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 185-222 Transformative Change and Partial Justice: Community Engagement and Service-Learning—Possibilities and Limitations (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 223-239 Conclusion: Human Development and the Common Good—Implications for Higher Education, Community Engagement and Service-Learning (Ntimi Nikusuma Mtawa)....Pages 241-255 Back Matter ....Pages 257-263