“I just kept quiet”: Exploring equity in a service-learning programme
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Date
2016
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
International Association for Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement (IARSLCE)
Abstract
Social justice underpins the sustainable development goal of health for all. In developing countries, social
injustices are particularly severe and widespread, demanding critical and immediate attention. This article
describes a qualitative, descriptive study that investigated pharmacy students’ responses to incidents of
social injustice following their service-learning experiences in public-sector primary healthcare facilities in
Cape Town, South Africa. Data were gathered from written reflection reports and then thematically
analyzed using the pedagogy of discomfort as an interpretive framework. Themes were categorised
according to students’ habitual responses to incidents of social injustice, how they interpreted their
responses, and how they could promote social justice in the workplace as future healthcare professionals.
Findings demonstrated students’ inability to take action and revealed that silence was the most common
response to incidents of discrimination. These results highlight the ways in which the structural constraints
of the societal status quo can perpetuate inequity. Study limitations include bias from students self-reports
and their narrow understanding of structural barriers in the work-place. Intergenerational dialogue and
advocacy is crucial across South African higher education to understand widespread social injustices.
Embedding a critical approach to service-learning in the African context needs exploration.
Description
Keywords
Critical service-learning, Pharmacy education, Social justice, Student voice, Pedagogy of discomfort, Learning through practice
Citation
Bheekie, A. et al. (2016). “I just kept quiet”: Exploring Equity in a Service-Learning Programme. The International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement, 4(1): 217 - 233