Nordon-Craft Amy, Schwarz Brandy, Kowalewski Victoria, Hartos Jessica, Jurado Severance Jennifer, Bugnariu Nicoleta
Physical Therapy Program, University of Colorado Denver, 13121 E. 17th Ave., Aurora, CO 80045, USA. Tel 303-724-8433.
J Allied Health. 2017 Fall;46(3):e51-e58.
Service-learning (SL) is one educational methodology that provides students opportunities to practice and refine affective, cognitive and psychomotor skills in a community-based setting.
The aims of this study were: 1) to investigate the impact of SL on physical therapy (PT) students' attitudes and perceived clinical competence when working with older adults, and 2) to evaluate the difference between perceptions of students who developed and implemented the SL activity vs those who implemented only.
Eighty PT students, (from two consecutive cohorts) enrolled in a first-year geriatrics course, participated in this study. The first cohort designed and implemented the SL activities, while the second cohort only implemented these activities. Student self-perceived anxiety, confidence, knowledge and skills were assessed by pre- and post-SL surveys using a 5- point Likert-like scale.
Both cohorts reported similar anxiety and confidence levels pre-SL. For both cohorts, with the exception of one item, all responses to anxiety items significantly decreased from pre- to post-SL. All students' confidence levels for assessing and mitigating fall risk in older adults increased post-SL (p<0.01). Moreover, students in cohort 1, who designed and delivered SL activities, expressed self-perceived improvement in their ability to interpret results of evaluations, to determine type and severity of balance impairments, and to serve a geriatric population (p<0.05) compared to students in cohort 2 who only implemented the activities.
Embedding SL into a geriatrics course decreased self-perceived anxiety and improved student confidence regarding working with older adults. Also, empowering students to be actively involved in the design and implementation of SL increased self-perceived ability in interpreting results from assessments.
服务学习（SL）是一种教育方法，为学生提供机会，使其在基于社区的环境中练习和完善情感、认知和运动技能。
本研究的目的是：1）调查服务学习对物理治疗（PT）专业学生与老年人合作时的态度和感知临床能力的影响，以及2）评估开展并实施服务学习活动的学生与仅实施这些活动的学生的认知差异。
八十名PT专业学生（来自连续两个班级）参加了一年级老年医学课程，参与了本研究。第一个班级设计并实施了服务学习活动，而第二个班级仅实施这些活动。通过服务学习前后的调查，使用5点李克特量表评估学生自我感知的焦虑、信心、知识和技能。
两个班级在服务学习前报告的焦虑和信心水平相似。对于两个班级，除一项外，所有焦虑项目的回答从服务学习前到服务学习后均显著下降。所有学生在服务学习后对评估和降低老年人跌倒风险的信心水平均有所提高（p<0.01）。此外，与仅实施活动的第二个班级的学生相比，设计并开展服务学习活动的第一个班级的学生在解释评估结果、确定平衡障碍的类型和严重程度以及服务老年人群体的能力方面，自我感知有改善（p<0.05）。
将服务学习融入老年医学课程可降低自我感知的焦虑，并提高学生与老年人合作的信心。此外，让学生积极参与服务学习的设计和实施可提高自我感知的评估结果解释能力。
