A Case Study on the Operation of the Jiaoxuexiangzhang Program: Integrating Service-learning and Overseas Volunteering

This study explores the possibility of using the program named Jiaoxuexiangzhang (teaching is learning), which integrates service-learning and overseas service, so that it can be used as an effective teaching and learning method for preserving the founding ideology of our university as well as academic excellence. This program, which was designed and conducted in this way, provided an opportunity for enhancing the university s core competencies including citizenship, “global issues,” communication, creative thinking, self-direction, and sharing practices. The students satisfaction with the program was also confirmed. The students perceived the outcome of the team project as being a fusion result based on their creative activities rather than a simple accumulation of knowledge; this led to their satisfaction with learning. Based on these major educational opportunities, service-learning and overseas volunteering activities helped students establish the goals of their major education, motivated them to learn through their own experiences and accomplishments, and helped them practice the knowledge and attitudes they learned in class and on the field. It was an opportunity for cultivating knowledge put in practice on a daily basis. In the future, I hope that such a “Jiaoxuexiangzhang” program will be operated for a wider variety of majors.