Service learning is an inclusive pedagogy appropriate for children, youth, and adults of all cultural backgrounds. Such programs share a commitment to lifelong learning and a philosophical base in experiential education. Planners need to choose an appropriate point of reference, identify learning goals, define activities accordingly, combine…

Describes a service-learning initiative involving George Williams College and an East Aurora, Illinois, elementary school. The Partners in Leadership Development Project was designed to provide a model for preservice training emphasizing an interdisciplinary team approach to delivering educational, social, and recreational services in a…

Explains the potential role and benefits of service learning in transforming schools. Argues that service learning has the potential to reinvigorate traditional classrooms and turn passive students into dynamic and engaged learners, but its implementation carries no guarantee of "product satisfaction." Further, its success lies in the…

Describes a Rutgers University (New Jersey) course to prepare undergraduates to participate effectively in civic life and public decisions about education and schooling. The course, which includes a service learning component, examines the theoretical and conceptual bases of civic responsibility, reviews the educational policymaking process, and…

The service-learning movement is widespread in European international schools. The most comprehensive initiative presented at two recent European Council of Independent Schools conferences was the Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) course that students must pass to graduate from International Baccalaureate schools. Exemplary programs in England…

Deaf and hearing impaired students at the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind participate in a bartering project in which they perform chores in exchange for food that is donated to charity. The project meets instructional objectives in social studies (learning how early settlers used bartering), mathematics (counting and classifying the…

The Ohio-West Virginia YMCA operates a one-week residential camp program for high school students that focuses on leadership, civic development, and community service. Students commit to performing community service after they return home. The program culminates in a youth-in-government role-playing exercise at the state capitol, where students…

Describes a study abroad program at the University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire that places students in Wittenberg, Germany. The program offers project-based learning in topics ranging from Martin Luther to the ecology of the Elbe; service learning with "guided reflection" (a requirement of the university); and a short-term business or professional…

States that a means to provide civic engagement of students is by developing social capital of high school students and adults within their communities through service learning. Contends that community service facilitates civic engagement and political activity in young people which continues into adulthood. (CMK)

States that to understand systems of power students must think about service and politics as a continuum of activities. Believes that a good model of service learning, as a citizenship education tool, is the historical relationship between women and community service. (CMK)

Outlines strategies used by one physical education teacher education program to incorporate the pedagogy of service learning into its curriculum and more completely address National Association for Sport and Physical Education and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Educators (NASPE/NCATE) guidelines, highlighting: the department, course…

Emphasizes value of service component in adventure education. Describes how rescue training in adventure programs promotes individual and group development. Explains how Outward Bound and similar programs emphasize rescue service using genuine or simulated rescues. Offers model and references for incorporating rescue-service theme into outdoor…

Reports on a study of the impact of service learning on the moral development of 70 undergraduate students. Finds that those with service learning experience showed a significantly higher rate of growth on a moral development measure than those who did not participate. Makes recommendations for further research. (CFR)

Discusses the history of U.S. community service programs and asserts that the potential benefits for students include increased self-esteem, enhanced motivation and interest in school, improved academic achievement, and increased social responsibility. Includes a list of six curriculum resources and a bibliography. (CFR)

Presents standards of quality for school-based service-learning, excerpted from a document developed by the Alliance for Service Learning in Education Reform. These standards are expected to evolve as the practice of high-quality, school-based service learning grows. A distinction is drawn between service-learning and community service. (SLD)