We define community education as organized lifelong learning through voluntary participation in collective efforts to critically address both individual and community needs. Community education has roots in European folk schools, United States participatory democracy, and Latin American "popular education." Community education developed…

We present a case study of a multi-year, academic civic engagement (ACE) collaboration in a computer science capstone course. ACE projects in computer science provide an avenue for students to apply software development concepts to real-world projects with actual clients, and can offer meaningful engagement with ethical issues. The typical…

The purpose of this study was to identify actual and perceived barriers and benefits of engaging in service-learning and volunteering activities as identified from the unique perspective of international students. Through the identification of barriers and benefits, we can provide more informed training to international students and provide a…

Interest in service-learning within TESOL has increased in recent years. Teacher-scholars have described multiple uses of such pedagogy in programs for students of English as a second language (ESL) and in courses of ESL teacher education. This article employs action research to focus on an introductory TESOL class at a U.S. university for which…

Due to the closing of the GM Manufacturing Plants, Grand Rapids, Michigan area experienced an extreme loss of jobs, which led to low-socioeconomic hardships such as "food insecurity" that was witnessed in the needs of the many students who attend the Grand Rapid Public Schools. This case provides insight into how educational leader…

Broadly defined as the combination and/or integration of participation in a community service activity with formal learning and reflection (Clark, 1999; Reising, Allen, & Hall, 2006; Tucker, McCarthy, & Lenk, 1998; Yan & Rodgers, 2006), service-learning activities range from voluntary student organized initiatives to mandatory…

Universities are uniquely positioned to lead society toward sustainability and their collaborations with community organizations are essential to this transition. The Biodiesel Program at Loyola University at Chicago Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy provides a case study of course-based service learning projects facilitating…

Many iterations of community based learning employ models, such as consciousness raising groups, cultural circles, and participatory action research. In all of them, learning is a deliberate part of an explicit educational activity. This article explores another realm of community learning: the informal learning that results from volunteering in…

This qualitative study is based on in-depth interviews with 40 representatives from 12 community-based organizations (CBOs) working with the Steans Center for Community-based Service-Learning at DePaul University in Chicago. These CBOs see themselves as partners with the University in educating college students about the realities of racial and…

This article explores the integration of technology into community engagement and service-learning activities at Tennessee State University (TSU). We have used active learning experiences to develop action-oriented research questions that help both students and local community members connect theory with experience and thought with action through…

This research, conducted with an introductory sociology class at the University of British Columbia during the 2001-2002 academic year, explored community service-learning as a pedagogy and philosophy. The theoretical focus of this paper is Nancy Fraser's (1997) criticisms of Jurgen Habermas' (1992) bourgeois liberal model of the public sphere. We…

This document contains 11 papers on researching service learning through a multidisciplinary lens. The following papers are included: "Introduction" (Shelley H. Billig, Andrew Furco); "Stretching to Meet the Challenge: Improving the Quality of Research to Improve the Quality of Service-Learning" (Janet Eyler);…