THURS-064 - Virtual Classrooms, Real-world Impact: Student Insights on E-service-learning in Health Promotion

Brief Abstract Summary: Discover how e-service-learning can enhance student engagement, deepen learning, and build real-world skills in online public health education. This presentation shares key findings from a study exploring undergraduate perceptions of a virtual, team-based health promotion project delivered asynchronously. Students reported increased interest in health promotion, perceived career benefits, and improved learning outcomes—despite the online format. Survey results showed significant gains in engagement and confidence post-project, challenging assumptions about the limitations of virtual service-learning.

Detailed abstract description: Gain practical strategies and inspiration for designing engaging, meaningful e-service-learning experiences in fully online courses. This presentation shares findings from a study that explored undergraduate student perceptions of a real-world, team-based health promotion project conducted in an asynchronous, online public health course. In this “extreme” e-service-learning model, where both instruction and service activities occur fully online, students applied health promotion theories to develop diabetes prevention and management webinars for a local employer’s virtual wellness program. The course sought to bridge academic content with real-world community impact.

Attendees will learn how structured project design, scaffolded assignments, peer review, and strong faculty-community partnerships can support student learning, even in the absence of face-to-face interaction. Survey data collected before and after the service-learning event revealed statistically significant increases in students’ interest in public health and their perception that the online format did not hinder their learning. Qualitative reflections reinforced the value of experiential learning, while also highlighting the challenges of virtual collaboration.

This session is especially relevant for instructors in public health, health education, and other disciplines that rely on experiential education. You’ll leave with a proven course framework adaptable to your own online programs, as well as strategies for increasing student engagement, promoting skill development, and reducing barriers in asynchronous learning environments.

Discover how e-service-learning can foster career readiness, civic engagement, and personal growth—all while supporting the flexible learning needs of today’s students. This approach aligns with the growing demand for online education and addresses equity in access to experiential learning opportunities for remote and non-traditional learners.