Service learning at Kaalspruit benefits students and farmers

Personal account of a service learning experience by Mr PZ (Petso) Mokhatla while he was a third-year student in Strategic Agricultural Management (LBB344) in 2004.

My experience at the KAALSPRUIT farm near Bloemfontein in the Free State was just as Prof Robert Bringle explained in the CommTalk issue of January 2004. He explained that the real intentions of the community service learning are:

• educating and developing students;
• changing their attitudes; and
• creating a lasting experience.

As far as educating students is concerned, I truly experienced it this way. Since we went to the Kaalspruit emerging farmers, most students' marks improved, because the curriculum was integrated with service learning and it piqued students' interest.

On the subject of student development, students learn more effectively because they have the opportunity to apply what they had learned. Information learned this way is not as easily forgotten, because different methods, including application, were used in the learning process.

Students who participate in community learning come to see the importance of service learning. For instance, some of the students in my class offered to assist the farmers in developing a fodder-flow planning, even after the programme ended. This shows how service learning can change attitudes.

My general experience at Kaalspruit was very rewarding, challenging and eye-opening. First of all, the students contributed something meaningful through these service learning tasks and the farmers welcomed us with open arms. We learnt as much from the farmers as they learnt from us. Continuing the visits to the farm will not only benefit the farmers, but also the University and the Department of Agriculture.

This experience really integrated very well with my course because as we have learned in the Strategic Management module, namely that if you don’t have a proper management system it will be very difficult to manage the farm. This type of student learning experience should continue with future students, because as students, there are a lot of things we can learn from such an experience.

"Universities are interested in service learning if students have a learning experience that encourages them to continue studying. Community service has the capacity to permanently influence the capacity to permanently influence the person doing the course and not just the student who is a transient being" – Prof Bringle

I totally agree with this statement of Prof Robert Bringle because of this service learning experience I am motivated to continue with my studies in strategic management, because most problems at the Kaalspruit farm are the same problems problems faced by most farmers to whom land is issued by the government through the land distribution programme. This experience won’t just be helpful for my studies, but it also gave me a feeling of which challenges I will be faced with at the work place.

"Service learning undoes prejudice and changes attitudes about community service" – Prof Bringle

When students participate in community learning they turn to see the importance of community service learning. For instance, some of the students in my class offered to provide help for the farmers even after the programme was over, namely to do a fodder-flow planning for the farm. This shows how service learning can change attitudes of students.

I strongly agree with this statement by Prof Bringle, because, like I said previously, service learning ensures that students learn more effectively because they get to apply what they have learned.
If that is the case, the information learned will not be easily forgotten because different methods, including the most effective method, which is application, was used in the learnership process.

"Students will master the course content better if community learning is part of the curriculum" – Prof Bringle

This is just as Prof Bringle explained and my lecturer agreed with me when I said that since we went to the Kaalspruit farm most students improved in the 2nd term test because it was integrated with the service learning and the general interest on the course improved.

The situation at the Kaalspruit farm

The farm had non or lacked an efficient management system, so basically management at this farm was not good because there were twelve (12) workers on the farm and they all fell in the same category. As a person I felt that this was not good because tasks could not be handled effectively and efficiently because the work was not distributed evenly. According to the strategic management principles, this was not good.

We also had to consider the fact that the farmers at Kaalspruit lacked funds, but the students showed the farmers some way in which they could improve their situation without basically getting funds from the government, e.g. if the farmers could sell some of their unused equipment they would be able to buy maize and other supplements needed to improve their income generated mainly from their milk production.

Students in conversation with some of the farmers at Kaalspruit