In 2010, I volunteered at Green Shoots, a service-learning educational non-profit school focused around environmental justice. While the school claimed to operate under an egalitarian, empowering "community of practice" framework, the experiences of youth and myself revealed a hierarchal power dynamic that put unequal demands on youth…

This article explores how on-the-ground Extension educators interface with higher education service-learning. Most service-learning in Extension has focused on precollege youth and 4-H. When we look at higher education service-learning and Extension in Wisconsin, we see that there is not as much connection as might be expected. County-based…

This mixed methods study explores a service-learning experience embedded in a social foundations course in a teacher education program. The authors differentiate learning outcomes for social justice and charity service-learning, and utilize this framework to examine whether the service-learning experience fosters a social justice perspective. The…

This study examines community service effects on adolescents' prosocial behaviors as mediated through experiences made during service. Based on theoretical assumptions by Youniss and Yates, we suggest that personal agency experiences and being confronted with situations that can challenge the own world views (ideology experiences) serve as…

The experiential learning model for students working with community groups was developed for specific experiential learning experiences involving 40 hours of actual experience for high school physical education students working with groups in the community. This article discusses the development and specific segments of the model, as well as how…

In 2010, the National Center for Learning and Civic Engagement (NCLCE) established the Schools of Success, a national network of 19 schools that use service-learning as an instructional strategy. The schools were part of a three-year project to examine how the elements of service-learning might enhance key student outcomes, such as academic…

As school districts and communities struggle to increase civic engagement for their students, a medium-sized suburban school district implemented required community service hours as part of their high school graduation requirements. The purpose of this qualitative program evaluation was to investigate how the community service program was meeting…

Research shows that not only does higher education not see the public; when the public, in turn, looks at higher education, it sees mostly malaise, inefficiencies, expense, and unfulfilled promises. Yet, the contributors to this issue of the "Higher Education Exchange" tell of bright spots in higher education where experiments in working…

Community engagement courses are becoming common in the discipline of information systems. In this paper the author analyzes the benefits and the challenges of an e-Portfolio in a course engaging students with a community of individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The case study in the paper finds generally higher engagement…

Service learning is an effective means of implementing course curriculum in the real world (Driskoll, 2009). As a Carnegie Foundation classified campus for the Advancement of Teaching, Community Engagement, the University of Texas Brownsville actively promotes service learning and partnerships with community agencies (www.utb.edu/vpaa/cce/Pages/).…

Teacher education programs face significant challenges in preparing future teachers for diverse classroom settings. Rising student socioeconomic and ethnic diversity is sharply juxtaposed against a relatively homogenous preservice teacher population. This article advances arguments that support the incorporation of service-learning experiences…

"Academically Adrift," the recent study of undergraduate performance, has revealed that college students are learning little, if anything, over the course of their four years at university. This article suggests that students are academically adrift, in part, because Americans are culturally marooned between two ways to pursue happiness,…

Domain-specific judgments about different forms of civic engagement were assessed in a sample 467 primarily White adolescents (M age = 15.26, range = 11-19). Adolescents reported on the obligatory nature and social praiseworthiness (respect) of different forms of civic involvement. Adolescents distinguished among four different categories of civic…

In this paper I consider how Hans-Georg Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics can complement the pragmatic theory that has informed the field of service-learning, and with its emphasis on community and respect for others, can offer an orientation to further the work of service-learning and community engagement in a mutually satisfying way for…

As social media becomes a more potent force in society, particularly for younger generations, the role in activism has been contested. This qualitative study examines 35 interviews with students regarding their perceptions of the use of social media in social change, their perceptions of activists, and their level of self-identification as an…