Expanding Our Concept of Community with Dr. Cecelia Musselman

Contributed by Suzie Kim, S-L Program Assistant and Co-op

February 19,2015

Irregular amounts of snow aren't the only thing the blustery cold winds of winter have blown into Northeastern this semester. This spring has seen slight changes to the structure of the Service-Learning Program that have allowed for new and different courses to jump on board the S-L train. One of these courses, Advanced Writing in the Disciplines for the Sciences, is taught by Dr. Cecelia Musselman. Although the course is certainly not new, the Service-Learning component is a fresh twist to her usual syllabus. Students in the Advanced Writing in the Disciplines for the Sciences are expected to contribute a scientific article to the Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, as their Unit III project.

"Writing is experiential. Period, " she points out, when asked about how Service-Learning has influenced the way she thought about her field. "When you pick up a pen and interact with the audience, that is an experience - but, it may not always be a service." In writing, the audience has a significant influence on the style and voice an author uses. Most students learn writing etiquette implicitly, and, for the most part, individually. What the Service-Learning component adds to this course is the opportunity to actively and consciously explore these lessons through reflective discussion with their peers. As students partake in these discussions, the virtual audience of Wikipedia starts to become the virtual community. This is significant as it shifts the student's focus from their individual contributions to identifying an actual need in the community and addressing it.

"I've been working on a research project concerning Wikipedia," Dr. Musselman explained when asked about her personal and professional goals for teaching her classes with Service-Learning in mind. "There is countless research done on how to write a good paper or a great review but there is no 'rule book' for encyclopedias, even though they've been around for a very long time. I'm interested in what kind of writing [our students can] do for Wikipedia." Many people believe that in this new age of technology and virtual communities, accessibility to information on the internet would be more viable, yet Dr. Musselman feels that there is still a gap in the level of accommodation for Wiki-users within the online community. The articles that the students are expected to write hold very dense scientific content, which may not be easily understood by people outside of the scientific community or those who are not familiar with the jargon of these specific fields.

This is where Service-Learning comes in - which Dr. Musselman describes as "an enhancement" to the class.

 "On campus, we have this idea that Service-Learning means you have to leave the classroom but that's not always the case," Dr. Musselman explains. "We don't [always] need to work in other people's classrooms or spaces to create mutually beneficial relationships [with our communities]." This is an observation that the Service-Learning Program keeps in mind as we explore a new variety of ways to partner with courses such as Dr. Musselman's.

We look forward to what the rest of this spring semester has in store for this class - as well as warmer weather and no more snow!