Learning outcomes

After spending several years in the Physics Department at UNamur, the physics student has acquired a range of disciplinary knowledge and a multitude of scientific skills.

As they near the end of their academic journey, this course unit invites the student to reflect on their personal, academic, and civic path. They will be prompted to consider the question:

"I have acquired scientific knowledge and skills. How can I use them to benefit society in the future?"

This reflection will lead to the undertaking of a civic project through a service experience for the community.

In this way, the student will also develop transversal relational and communication skills.

Goals

Service-Learning is an educational approach that aims to incorporate social engagement into traditional academic teaching. The objective for students is to participate in a project or get involved in an organization whose missions address societal issues (in physics, for example, the contribution of physics to medicine, climate change, the tension between the importance of materials and their natural abundance, the production of (non)renewable energy, etc.).

Service-Learning is based on three pillars: "Serve," "Reflect," and "Learn." It is necessary to learn about reality, to take action on it, and to effect change.

Students contribute to society by engaging with a specific community or by participating in a solidarity project. This engagement experience is carried out in collaboration with a non-profit organization, an NGO, or a local social enterprise.

Content

The content of the workshops will vary depending on the projects chosen by the students.

Teaching methods

The student will be guided in their reflection and trained in project development (project-based learning). They will also be encouraged to formulate a SMART objective (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound).

To do this, they will need to consider several questions:

  • Which knowledge and skills acquired during their academic training do they deem useful for society?
  • Which societal issue would they like to contribute to? [e.g., debates on nuclear energy, the impact of technology on our lives, the use of mineral resources in technology, climate change, renewable energy or a specific one...]
  • What action would they like to implement?
  • Who is their target audience? [e.g., the general public, the university community, a secondary/primary school class, a youth movement, a municipality, a non-profit organization, UNamur students, their classmates, the Physics Department...]

Assessment method

The evaluation is based on a self-assessment by the student, supported by a grading rubric that outlines all the knowledge and skills targeted by the course unit. The submission of a logbook, to be completed throughout the semester, will be a key component of this evaluation.

Sources, references and any support material

Sources will vary depending on the projects chosen by the students.

Language of instruction

French