Chapter 3: Creating an eService-Learning Course Sequence Using the Addie Model

Adult-learners often do not have an opportunity to engage in servicelearning or community-based learning opportunities when returning to higher education in online learning platforms. Many students across the country have earned academic credits from a variety of institutions of higher education but have not completed their bachelor’s degree. Given its accessibility for adult-learners, particularly for those who may already be working in a career or profession, online learning opportunities in higher education remain a popular and sought-after option for those learners looking to earn their undergraduate degree. Online education, often delivered asynchronously, may tend to offer very limited opportunities for students to engage with one another, instructors, and the general community. This may be especially true for online service-learning coursework and projects, particularly when administered through an asynchronous learning platform. The purpose of this chapter is to focus on the steps needed in creating an eService-learning course sequence that supports service-learning staff, faculty and administrators that are looking for solutions to best engage adult-learners in online spaces and platforms utilizing the process framework model to develop the Academic Community Impact Program (ACI) at Thomas Edison State University. This process may be useful for others in the service-learning/community engagement professional field who teach online instruction primarily or now since the COVID-19 global pandemic has changed how many higher education institutions deliver instruction.