Community service trips are often viewed as educational because students supposedly cross socio-economic, racial, and other borders to engage with people of various backgrounds. However, diversity among students, their differing experiences of the service trip, and the ways they learn from each other's experiences are rarely discussed. Based on…

How do we make of students learning something their teacher did not intend to teach? Researchers suggest it unnecessary extras, learning of implicit rules of the game, or keys to understand power structure. Based on an ethnographic fieldwork of a college alternative break trip to learn about poverty through simulation, this article suggests such…

An 18-volume series on service-learning in the academic disciplines provides a rudimentary map to a renewed vision of American higher education by opening classroom doors to real-world experiences in workplaces and communities. Discusses: the series background; inclusiveness and disciplinary legitimacy as guiding principles; variations on a theme;…

Describes the creation of a community-service option for biology nonmajors as part of the course requirements. The student had to relate the project to some aspect of biology. The goal was to teach students that learning science is an everyday occurrence, and that they can make a difference in their community. Program instructions and student…

A Head Start volunteer project was designed for a college-level child development course and implemented in three different sections of the class across two semesters. Overall, 70 students participated (65 females and 5 males) with assessment data collected from student volunteers and Head Start teachers and administrators. Students reported a…

Assesses the extent to which students' attitudes toward international understanding are effected by an intensive two-year service-learning program. Research results generally supported the hypothesis that students who are involved in service learning show larger increases in international understanding than students involved in volunteerism or no…

Service-learning pedagogies are used in K-12 and higher education to provide students with experiential learning opportunities and foster connections between students, their communities, and the world. Presents comments from librarians across the United States on their experiences with service-learning programs. Suggests strategies for libraries…

Students from an Albany (New York) free school spent a week repairing storm damage in a Puerto Rican village with a rich history of community solidarity. The students learned how good it feels to help others and the power of cooperation. They also encountered another culture, discovered they could cope with challenge, and experienced appreciation…

This report addresses impact of the Learn and Serve America Higher Education (LSAHE) service learning initiatives on communities, higher education institutions, and students, and is based on 3 years (1995-97) of data collection and observation at 27 institutions. LSAHE has awarded grants to higher education institutions and community organizations…

Suggestions for service learning projects that have been tested in schools around the state of Washington are presented in this guide. Several specific programs are described along with the rationale of why students should participate in service learning. Suggestions are given on how to develop an ethic of service, maximizing involvement, and…

Profiles the accomplishments and philosophies of three individuals who strongly advocated community service and who profoundly influenced the field of experiential education, including Robert K. Greenleaf, author of "Servant Leadership"; Alec Dickson, who traveled extensively to promote the development of community service organizations…

This paper discusses service learning, arguing that the pedagogy of service learning offers a framework in which students can remember and apply more of what they learn than in traditional content based and faculty centered curriculum. Service learning strategies recognize that we retain 60% of what we do, 80% of what we do with guided reflection,…

The author, who is the President of Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC), Florida, argues that the fundamental purpose of MDCC is to preserve democracy. MDCCs open-door policy makes it possible for those who might otherwise be excluded from higher education to gain a college education, which then makes it possible for them to become active,…

Resources developed by "Campus Compact," a coalition of over 550 colleges and universities established to create and enhance service learning opportunities for students, are presented in this handbook for mathematics and science faculty. A brief introduction defines service learning and provides a continuum of types of service learning,…

A study examining the characteristics of students engaged in service learning and the association between service learning participation and student performance involved 699 college students in an American government course over three semesters. Females and lower-income students were more likely to be service learning participants, and service…