Johnson C. Smith University, one of the nation's oldest historically Black colleges and universities, has a peer education program known as Students with a Realistic Mission (SWARM). SWARM's primary focus is on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted disease prevention, alcohol education, and other drug awareness. During the spring 2000 semester, we…

Service-learning is a wide-spread educational strategy in K-16 education. Currently 64% of all public schools and 83% of public high schools have community service. Researchers have proclaimed the many benefits of service learning in terms of student empowerment, but does it have the power to create a counter-hegemony that provides an alternative…

Growth in the field of early childhood education has placed emphasis on improving quality through leadership and teacher education. With the advancement of the early childhood field, teacher education programs are called upon to develop leaders, challenge experienced teachers and meet professional standards through advanced degree programs.…

This article examines the persistent gaps in academic achievement among different racial and ethnic groups in the United States. The magnitude of the gaps is documented and potential causes summarized. One of the causes, and potential solution, is social capital. Research documenting the strong correlations between social capital and academic…

Scholars of public opinion and socialization have documented extensively the declining levels of political knowledge and the increasing levels of political apathy and individualism among young people. The purpose of this paper is to assess an American Government course's ability to affect young people's perceptions of power in the political system…

Service learning has been recognized as an effective pedagogical tool in the writing classroom. It has also served to help students develop an awareness of diversity and multicultural issues. In this article, the author examines the benefits of service learning in a basic writing course designed for students of color attending a disproportionately…

America's Promise Alliance recommends that all sectors of society work together to ensure all young people have a 21st century education in which service-learning and civic involvement are components. This policy/practice brief explores service-learning as a place-based family-strengthening strategy that develops the capacity of youth as a core…

The Academy For Learning (AFL) serves urban students with emotional and behavioral problems. Through a Personal and Social Responsibility program, students develop skills for personal growth and service learning. Many alternative programs for troubled students offer little more than a curriculum for containment and control. In contrast, students…

From a visual perspective, many disadvantaged students are assigned to schools that are dark, shabby and lifeless--more like a factory or fortress than a place for learning. Equally lifeless is the standard test-driven curriculum which utterly fails to tap the interests and talents of these students. Stultified learning environments are…

One response to the need to prepare future teachers as multicultural educators is to use service learning with an immigrant population as part of a teacher education program. This article documents the impact of a project that engaged preservice teachers in tutoring struggling young English language learners. Content analysis was used at the…

Character includes the emotional, intellectual and moral qualities of a person or group as the demonstration of these qualities in prosocial behavior. Character education is an inclusive term encompassing all aspects of how schools, related social institutions and parents can support the positive character development of children and adults.…

This book offers a groundbreaking examination of citizenship education programs that serve contemporary youth in schools and communities across the United States. These programs include social studies classes and curricula, school governance, and community-based education efforts. The book takes an interdisciplinary approach to exploring the…

This issue of "Journal for Learning the Arts: A Research Journal on Arts Integration in Schools and Communities" embodies the range of arts and learning possible in our schools and communities. The articles reflect the diverse landscape of arts education, including dance, poetry, visual arts, drama, music and media. Each author takes to…

Using panel data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS), the authors first analyze how civic engagement (measured in terms of community service and participation in student government) undertaken at the high school level varies across race/ethnicity and gender. The findings indicate that female high school students tend to…

Need in Deed (NID) is a non-profit organization which has been serving Philadelphia schools since 1987. The organization aims to promote youth engagement in their schools and communities by working with teachers to develop and implement service learning projects in which students can apply academics to real life problems. Until recently, NID staff…