This 'teaching tip' shares the success of a service-learning opportunity created to work with university students in a meaningful way in the community. It describes a program called Fit 4 Tots that resulted in more toddlers, university students and community members benefiting from learning and movement experiences.

Community-Based Research (CBR) presents a wide range of benefits in higher education to students, community partners, and universities. Yet on our campus (and many others), CBR remains less common than other high-impact practices (HIPs) such as service learning and undergraduate research due to lack of effective institutionalization. Moreover,…

This paper examines the strengths and weaknesses of different models of education. The author, a teacher of humanities at Newark Academy in New Jersey, aims to move beyond some of the rhetoric about "progress" or rhetoric that implies there is something inherently right or wrong about different systems for organizing schools and…

School-based gardens are increasingly common. The benefits to students reflect principles of global education by modeling sustainability through responsible ecological planning and service to the community, the environment, and humanity. The authors propose a pedagogical framework for planning school gardens and related experiences that…

Since its inception, Metropolitan State University has demonstrated a strong commitment to community partnerships and the integration of community engagement into student learning and scholarship while meeting community-defined needs. This article presents examples of reciprocal partnerships in the context of a shared community-university library…

This article describes the Community Grant Writing Project (CGWP), a flexible service-learning framework designed for use in writing-intensive courses. The CGWP incorporates best-practice recommendations from the service-learning literature and addresses recent challenges identified for successful service-learning partnerships. In the CGWP,…

In this article, the authors describe how an existing partnership between two communities, one in eastern Iowa and one in Mexico, was turned into a cross-disciplinary and international service learning course for students in the University of Iowa Colleges of Engineering, Pharmacy, and Liberal Arts and Sciences. The projects that students worked…

Student learning is enriched by problem-based service learning (PBSL) projects. For Hispanic students, the learning that takes place in PBSL projects may be even more significant, although the research published in academic journals about client-based projects for Hispanic students is limited. This article begins to advance an understanding of how…

What is service-learning and how can students and community benefit from it? With the pressure of covering all of the content, passing tests, meeting standards and making AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress), how is it realistically feasible to make learning more meaningful so that students are able to take it and utilize it in real life? There is no…

This article discusses how service learning and experiential learning affect university students who do the service. Experiential learning may be broadly defined and may range from fields such as anthropology, biology, agriculture, and classics. Service learning requires that something be given to the community and or individuals who receive this…

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, created in partnership with NASSP in 1995, recognizes young people who initiate outstanding volunteer projects. In two years, the program has honored 10,000 young heroes. In the fall, schools across the nation promote the opportunity and encourage nominations of outstanding youngsters. The purpose is to…

The West Virginia Community Partnership Model (WVCPM) fosters partnerships among academic faculty, students, extension faculty (and staff), and community organizations to produce significant community-based student learning; increased university involvement in community service across the state; and cultural change that improves collaboration…

Asserts that the purpose of the school must be more than a celebration of individual achievement; schools should incorporate opportunities for learning that involve altruism and community participation. Describes a secondary school community service program. (CFR)