Photo credit: Dorcas Lee

By Dr. Sunaina Assanand and Benjamin Cheung

An important goal of education is the application of knowledge to social change. Typically, however, students are presented with limited opportunities to contribute to social change over the course of their education. For the past three years, UBC’s Psychology Department has offered an International Service Learning course that empowers students to act as agents of social change. Students complete a three-month placement with a non-profit organization in Africa, applying psychology to local development initiatives.

Learn more about PSYCH 417A: Psychology and Developing Societies in this video featuring Dr. Sunaina Assanand:

In the months ahead, you will read about our students’ experiences with these organizations as part of the PSYC 417A blog series. We, the teaching team for the course, are proud of our students’ work with these organizations and hope that our students will serve as inspiration for others.

Dr. Sunaina Assanand is a Senior Instructor in UBC’s Department of Psychology and Associate Dean – Student Success, in the Faculty of Arts at UBC. She cultivates critical thinking and inspires student learning on topics such as gender, culture and personality, and community service.

Benjamin Chueng is a graduate student and sessional instructor in UBC’s Department of Psychology. He is passionate about teaching and helping undergraduate students get the most out of their student experience.

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