A service learning approach: Aligning Douglas College's strategic plan while engaging local communities

Douglas College is a student first Canadian community college committed to fostering an environment in which students develop a passion and purpose through their academic program. The Sport Science Department embeds experiential, service learning within a number of classes across our Diploma and degree to enable students’ development into empathetic, critical thinkers. Our Department has created relationships with various community groups in order to meet their needs while facilitating and enriching student learning. This session will highlight the following work of our students: the implementing of Teaching Games for Understanding strategies for home learners; the planning and teaching of fundamental movement skills and movement education to elementary students in public schools; and the provision of fitness testing to local Bantam minor hockey players. Faculty and students have coordinated these approaches to align with the Douglas College 2015-2020 Strategic Plan and to inspire students to develop their own networking and innovation strategies.