Graduates of the John Stanford Public Service and Political Science Academy at Franklin High School in Seattle, Washington, leave school with self-confidence and a fiery sense of civic duty, giving back to their communities in crucial ways. Students tackle civic and ethical issues daily in the classroom, and the service-learning projects they…

This book concerns potential and actual uses of service learning as an instructional methodology in teacher education. Section 1 discusses how service and learning are primary to practically all roles teachers play. Section 2, a rationale for service learning and teacher education, shows consistency with Goals 2000, school-to-work transition, and…

The National Student Service-Learning and Community Service Survey was conducted in spring 1999 to determine the percentage of public K-12 schools that incorporate service learning into their course curriculum. Some of the findings of the study are the following: (1) 64 percent of public schools, including 83 percent of high schools, had students…

Service learning represents a relatively low-cost strategy for enhancing youngsters' educational experience. Research at Brandeis University suggests that payback to communities substantially outweighs moderate costs involved in integrating service learning into the curriculum. Lower overhead helps districtwide initiatives achieve lower ($27)…

This Digest defines service-learning as both a philosophy of education and an instructional method. As a philosophy, service-learning reflects the belief that education should develop social responsibility and prepare students to be involved citizens in democratic life. As an instructional method, service-learning involves a blending of service…

This guidebook focuses on the addition of environmental service learning in elementary, middle, or high school. Sections 1 and 2 describe an administrator's view of the success of service learning in her middle school and a student's opinion of her encounters with Mississippi's natural resources. Section 3 provides a rationale for environmental…

Service learning, which combines community service with curriculum objectives, has several components: preparation, collaboration, service projects, curriculum integration, and reflection. Although opponents of mandatory programs criticize service learning as detracting from academics, studies indicate positive effects on academic achievement and…

Philadelphia schools were the first to engage all 200,000 K-12 students in meaningful service-learning activities aligned with district academic standards and learning goals. This has meant providing professional development for 6,000 teachers, forging partnerships with 2,500 community experts and agencies, and developing an efficient evaluation…

Hudson, Massachusetts, an industry-based, socioeconomically diverse community with 2,800 students in six schools, developed a comprehensive preK-12 service-learning program. Parent support, ongoing professional development, curriculum planning time, administrative support, and sustained funding have helped the program achieve districtwide…

Describes the planning and integration of the Earthkeepers Programme into the curriculum at Orchard Park Secondary School, Ontario. Benefits included student development of community skills and relationships with the natural world, as well as leadership and responsibility through cross-age teaching of elementary students by high school seniors.…

America's prairie land is under economic and ecological stress. Acting on the belief that rural schools can help revitalize their communities when schools' activities are related to the places where they are located, schools in Arizona, Kansas, and Nebraska are integrating prairie studies across the K-12 curricula. With the help of area…

The SouthEastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE) Sharing Success program recognizes exemplary public school efforts and practices in the southeastern United States for the purpose of increasing the awareness and use of exemplary educational programs. This document highlights more than 30 elementary- and/or secondary-level programs that have…

Research, while limited, finds that service learning positively affects participants as to social development, academic achievement, civic awareness, and career exploration. High-quality programs maximize student outcomes. The difference between service learning and community service is linkage to standards and specific curriculum content. Key…

This collection of papers includes lessons learned from a 3-year collaboration among faculty who had pursued a scholarly inquiry of service-learning, integrated service-learning into their curricula, altered their teaching, forged partnerships with community based organizations, and developed measures and methodologies for assessing results. The…

These four issues of "Aligning," a newsletter-like publication of the Colorado School-to-Career Partnership and Partnerships for Educating Colorado Students, provide information about various facets of the school-to-work program in the state. One of the four-page issues highlights the connection between the work of the Colorado Education…