This study analyzes attitudes that first-year students from three different learning communities (LCs) and their faculty had about service learning in general and their actual placement with a nongovernmental organization (NGO) serving a West African refugee and immigrant community in particular. Similar to other studies, we found that students…

Preservice teachers often have low post-school expectations for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), although the stated goal of special education is to increase those very outcomes. However, setting high expectations and learning the accompanying soft skills is a complex skill set to include in special education…

Background: Service-learning has been used in adapted physical activity and education (APA/E) courses in kinesiology. However, evidence has been lacking to clarify the need for utilizing service-learning in APA/E courses as an avenue to change attitudes of students. Purpose: This study aimed to compare two APA/E courses, one with service-learning…

This study examined whether combining classroom curriculum with direct experience with people with disabilities (PWDs) can influence change in undergraduate students' attitudes toward PWDs. Undergraduate students (N = 68) enrolled in a psychology course completed the Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale at the beginning and end of the semester.…

University students who experience real-world service tend to develop a more inclusive world view and enhanced understandings outside of their personal perspectives. This project combined course objectives, community collaboration, and service provision to identify the impact of students' understanding of social justice and disability access…

Service-learning as a transformative pedagogy within university education is becoming increasingly popular in Australia. Advocates of service-learning indicate that the practice of combining community based voluntary work with theoretical in-class academic knowledge leads to a greater awareness about diversity and difference in students. While…

Power dynamics are implicated in intergroup prosocial behavior (Nadler & Halabi, 2015). This research investigated two factors that influence the effect of intergroup prosocial behavior on views of social equality: amount of direct intergroup contact and type of helping. Students in a social psychology course (N = 93) were randomly assigned to…

Regardless of their particular field of practice, social workers increasingly serve the growing population of older adults in the United States. This article describes the process of integrating an experiential component into a Baccalaureate Social Work (BSW) course involving 75 BSW students. Reflections on the strengths and challenges during 3…

This research uses contact theory to examine the impact of a service learning class on college students' attitudes toward people with disabilities. Students were involved in both lecture material and working directly with people with disabilities in a therapeutic camp environment. Eighty-four students responded to the questionnaires at three time…

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine preservice and first-year music educators' perspectives on fieldwork activities embedded within a music teacher preparation program. One cohort of students was tracked for 2.5 years as they participated in an elementary teaching practicum, fulfilled the student teaching internship, and…

The authors describe how Southern Utah University has integrated the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Voluntary Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program as an experiential servicelearning activity for over a decade and a half. First, we describe the value of experiential servicelearning. Second, we detail the program, its oversight, its student…

In this paper, we investigate the effects of a community- and school-based service learning experience (SLE) on pre-service physical education teachers' Indigenous knowledge, cultural competency and pedagogy. Informed by the theoretical tenets of Indigenous research methodologies, experiential learning and critical reflection, we examine 55…

Problem: The study primarily focused on how a Service Learning project resulted in a Transformative Learning experience. The sample was drawn from 82 participants from Rutgers University who took part in a week-long alternative Spring Break community service project in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina in 2006. Interviews were conducted…

As communications students learn to tell stories, the curriculum should teach them to cover diverse groups accurately. Scholars have studied coverage of diversity in gender, nationality, ethnicity, and race. One area that has seen less attention is economic diversity, in particular, coverage of the poor. This paper examines how service-learning…

Participation in experiential education is said to enhance people's appreciation for diversity. This article reports on a study that found significant changes in participants' attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors following a non-formal diversity education program using adventure-based and community-service activities. Additionally, hypothesized…