Discusses the advantages of international service learning programs in developing students' language and cross-cultural communication skills, as well as their concept of the world as an interdependent system. Notes characteristics and outcomes of successful international service learning programs, such as the program at the University of North…

A graduate of St. Mary's College of Maryland recounts her experience on two of the college's service learning trips, one to Guatemala and one to the Gambia. She reports that the international service learning experience had a great impact on her in the areas of career choice, cultural understanding, and personal reflection. (DB)

Reflecting upon the previous decade, an advocate for service-learning continues his call for institutional responsibility while taking a look at the progress made. Ehrlich writes that service learning has come of age and suggests three major directions for continued advancement. The first stresses service-learning's value for enhancing academic…

This conversation began with the question: what has teaching Appalachian Studies taught us about teaching in general? Several themes emerged. Teaching Appalachian studies makes the subject matter relevant to the personal growth of students; requires innovative curriculum development; and because of its activist past, connects naturally with…

Twelve theme articles discuss service learning and reflection in agricultural education, student perspective on service learning, Future Farmers of America, character education, intergenerational projects, agricultural communications, and service learning as advocacy. (SK)

Discusses the benefits for students and communities of service-learning experiences. Briefly describes student efforts to formulate and solve community problems as part of the Expeditionary Learning project (Massachusetts), which calls on adults and students to embark on experiential learning "expeditions" to renew themselves as…

Discusses how service learning can promote the development of a "caring self" in college students by drawing on the ideas of John Dewey, George Herbert Mead, and contemporary critical theorists. Links this caring self to democratic citizenship and uses students' narratives to illustrate how it develops through service learning contexts.…

Service-learning gives school administrators a powerful tool to achieve some of their most important goals: educating students to high levels, connecting with the community, and preparing students to be active participants in the world around them. This issue paper examines why administrators support service-learning as a key element in school…

Explains the potential role and benefits of service learning in transforming schools. Argues that service learning has the potential to reinvigorate traditional classrooms and turn passive students into dynamic and engaged learners, but its implementation carries no guarantee of "product satisfaction." Further, its success lies in the…

Relates Carol Gilligan's two perspectives on moral reasoning (care and justice) to discussions in service learning circles concerning the relationship between charity and social change as orientations of service and service-learning and to the nature of "self." The discussion informs the questions of what constitutes "mature"…

Service learning in higher education can be a powerful method of citizen education, by building students' concrete civic skills in the areas of intellectual understanding, communication and problem solving, and civic attitudes of judgment and imagination. A basic condition is that broad definitions of service and citizenship be assumed, and used…

Movements calling for reform in undergraduate education and the initiative for civic responsibility are traced, demonstrating that they have mutual concerns and self-interests. Though largely separate from and unknown to each other, their complementarity provides the basis for joint action. By integrating efforts to increase student involvement in…

Community service is excellent for students if done in proper circumstances. There should be worthwhile, carefully chosen, objectives for learner attainment. Learning opportunities need to be safe and emphasize the psychology of education. Noting that he has supervised student teachers in the public schools for 30 years, the author of this paper…

Seven college students at Florida State University recognized on campus for exemplary character and service were interviewed about how college student peer groups function both to inhibit and to encourage development of character and civic responsibility. Their responses are summarized, and strategies that institutions can use to promote moral and…

Reports on Miami-Dade Community College's experience with service learning and the "America Reads" program, which have proven to be effective and important ways to help fulfill higher education's commitment to community building, scholarship, and civic responsibility. Outlines some of the keys to success in building a successful service…