Service learning as an alternative to traditional clinical placements: Experiences of student speech pathologists

Service learning is a collaborative approach to teaching and learning built around reciprocal relationships between universities and community organisations. Recently, the University of Canberra established the ‘Good Start in Life’ (GSIL) service-learning program to address growing gaps in all domains of child development. This study explores experiences and perceptions of ten speech pathology students who participated in this program as part of their clinical placement. Qualitative data was collected during focus groups. Data was transcribed and analysed in NVivo using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged: confidence in communicating, consolidation of course content, delivering services across the community, and student experiences of workload and supervision. The results highlighted the value of working across community settings to increase students’ ability to adapt their communication in different contexts. Results indicate participation in the GSIL service-learning program supported student clinical competency development, suggesting that service-learning may be a suitable alternative to traditional clinical placements.