The current movement to institutionalize Experiential Education (EE) reflects and acts as a response to contemporary concerns about the perceived value of investing in education. The authors delineate the need to collaborate within a shared understanding of the possibilities, diversity, and operational practicalities of EE across different units…

Through an analysis of a practice-oriented course on youth worker professional development consisting of 10 community youth workers and 11 traditional college students, this paper suggests the need to construct the classroom as a "borderland." Course structure, class composition, pedagogical strategies, and deliberate learning objectives disrupted…

The global nature of social problems indicates how important it is for social workers to be involved in international issues. For example, overseas experience in social work programs is in consonance with the Council on Social Work Education's emphasis on global context of social work practice. In view of this, some schools of social work are…

This paper explores the experiences of pre- and in-service teachers through intentionally created narrative inquiry (Connelly & Clandinin, 2006) spaces within three different service-learning engagements in Canada, Kenya, and Turkey. Because the contexts where our studies were situated were culturally different from participants' backgrounds,…

This article analyzes the role of service-learning faculty fellows programs in promoting pedagogical innovation and university-community engagement. The analysis is based on the findings of a study conducted among former fellows at two universities in North Carolina, USA. The faculty fellows programs had a strong influence on participants'…

This paper reviews how service learning pedagogy is being used by one program to 1) increase the visibility of and advocacy for school health education and the coordinated school health program (CSHP) and 2) meet the needs of students in its master's level professional preparation programs. Three benefits to employing service learning are…

Knowledge of learners' assets beyond the traditional structure of school can provide preservice teachers with essential gateways to connecting learners with the content to be studied, and with forming beneficial social relationships that can enhance learning. This article describes ways that preservice teachers responded to community-based…

Professional identity is a term used to describe both the collective identity of a profession and an individual's own sense of the professional role. This article draws from the literature exploring professional identity with attention to the issues of developing professional identity in fields such as art therapy where lower wages, fewer jobs,…

Describes four important aspects of critical thinking as: identifying and questioning assumptions, seeking a multiplicity of voices and alternatives on a subject, making connections, and fostering active involvement. Discusses theoretical links between critical thinking and ethics. Concludes with a large-scale service learning project that…

Title IX and Johnson O'Malley services were provided to 1,495 Native American students at 10 Albuquerque (New Mexico) elementary, middle, and high schools and the Homework Center during the 1997-98 school year. The five goals of the Title IX program were to provide: (1) intervention assistance for students, in which students, parents, and staff…

Reform efforts require principals to build alliances with the community, legislators, and media. The U.S. Department of Education's New High Schools employ a common set of improvement strategies: innovative instruction, integrated technology, tailored professional development, community service, work-based learning, and strong community…

This article explores the effects of the integration of diversity, service learning, and professional development school partnerships in preparing preservice teachers to understand and address discriminatory practices in school settings. Background information, challenges, and successes of this professional development school partnership between a…

Restructuring middle-level education calls for broad, fundamental, and multifaceted changes in schooling. Such changes must be based on a clear articulation of how early adolescents learn and supported by congruent practices and expectations. Forward-thinking middle schools stress interdisciplinary teaming, active learning, responsible…

Explores why community services learning (CSL) is the right thing to do for professional renewal, enrichment, and meaning. Examples are given from Gig Harbor High School (Washington). The role of CSL in changing school cultures is also examined. Service learning is a path to better ways to educate. (SLD)