Service Learning Information
Service-Learning
"Thought without practice is empty, practice without thought is blind." -Kwame Nkrumah, Former President of Ghana
There is no SINGLE definition of service-learning. Basically, educators have long been using service-learning methods. We have involved our children and young adults in service to the community through our schools, religious institutions, and youth organizations. However, service-learning is not simply community service. "Although the terms service-learning and community service are sometimes used interchangeable, they are not synonymous. Community service can be, and often is, a powerful experience for young people, but community service ripens to service-learning when there is a deliberate and explicit connection made between service and learning opportunities which are then accompanied by conscious and thoughtful occasions to prepare for and reflect on the service experience." (Alliance for Service-Learning in Education Reform, March 1995)
According to the National and Community Service Act of 1990, service-learning is a method:
A) under which students learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service experiences that meet actual community needs;
B) that is integrated into the students� academic curriculum or provides structured time for a student to think, talk, or write about what the student did and saw during that service activity;
C) that provides students with opportunities to use newly acquired skills and knowledge in real-life situations in their own communities; and
D) that enhances what is taught in school by extending student learning beyond the classroom and into the community and helps to foster the development of a "sense of caring for others." (National and Community Service Act of 1990)
Service-Learning is a powerful tool. It transforms a young person from a passive recipient to an active participant. According to Frank Newman at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, "If there is a crisis in education in the United States, it is less that test scores have declined than it is that we have failed to provide the education for citizenship that is still the most important responsibility of the nation�s schools and colleges." (Cohen, 1994) Newman, like many advocates of service-learning, believes that the marriage of community service and education is the panacea for our ailing national school systems. Critics are concerned that although service does provide that "do-good, neighborly feelings," it is disconnected for serious intellectual work. However, if educators properly implement the goals and mission of service-learning, the students meet both the service and the academic objectives.
Therefore, many of our nation�s schools and colleges are working towards a common goal, promoting not only the importance of classroom knowledge, but also the importance of citizenship and community involvement as well. This is service-learning.
Why
should I be interested in service-learning?
School-based and community-based initiatives have many common goals. Each strives to educate the students. "Service, combined with learning adds value and transforms both." (Elyer, Giles, & Braxton, 1997) Service-Learning provides a "win/win/win" situation, with benefits to the students and to the community. According to Miami-Dade Community College, an institution with a highly successful service-learning center, an effective service-learning program can build a learning community where the students, the community, and the faculty members benefit. Some of the benefits Miami-Dade include are:
Benefits to the Student:
- · Service-learning enriches student learning by
moving them from the margin of the classroom experience to the center.
It "brings books to life and life to books."
· Students come to see the relevance and importance of academic work in their real life experiences.
· It enhances student�s self-esteem by allowing them to "make a difference" through their active and meaningful contributions to their communities.
· It broadens perspectives and enhances critical thinking skills.
· It improves inter-personal and human relations skills which are increasingly viewed as the most important skills in achieving success in professional and personal spheres.
· It provides guidance and experience for future career choice.
- · Service-Learning initiatives provide the community
with substantial human resources to meet its educational, human, safety,
and environmental needs. The talent, energy, and enthusiasm of students
are applied to meet these ever-increasing needs.
· Many students commit to a lifetime of volunteerism after this experience, creating a democracy of participation.
· Service-Learning creates a spirit of civic responsibility and replacing the current state of dependence on government programs. It results in a renewed sense of community and encourages participative democracy.
· Community agencies gain the opportunity to participate in an educational partnership.
- · Service-Learning enriches and enlivens teaching.
· It changes our role from the expert on top to the expert on tap, and with that change we enjoy a new relationship with our students and a new understanding of how learning occurs.
· As we connect the community to the curriculum, we become more aware of current societal issues as they relate to our academic areas of interest.
· We identify new areas for research and publication, and thus increase our opportunities for professional recognition and reward.
Service-Learning enables educators to emphasize student-centered, interactive teaching methods. It integrates curricular concepts with real-world situations in the community, thereby inviting students to analyze, evaluate, and integrate the concepts learned in the classroom in the context of community service. Service-Learning provides relevancy to learning by supplying a practical forum for lessons in math, science, language, and social studies. It teaches students about active participation in the community and values of good citizenship. The basic premise is that young people can actively work to address the immediate and long-term community challenges. It provides them with meaningful work and promotes a sense of self within the community.
Philosophy
of Service-Learning
According Jane Kendall service-learning is a philosophy of "human growth and purpose, a social vision, an approach to community, and way of knowing." (Kendall, 1990). As a novel teaching methodology, service-learning can help remedy the school system which seems to be failing this country�s youth. The philosophy underlying service learning forces our nation�s schools to see beyond SAT scores, math achievement, or literacy rates, and take another step backwards to examine the BIG picture. It poses the question of whether the failure of schools is attributable to neglect within the curriculum for a basic tenet of human development--the formation of character.
"Did you too, O friend, suppose democracy was only for elections, for politics, and for a party name? I say democracy is only of use there that it may pass on and come to its flower and fruits in manners, in the highest forms of interaction between men (and women), and their beliefs- in religion, literature, colleges and schools-- democracy in all public and private life..." Walt Whitman (From Barber, 1992)
The above quote by Walt Whitman examines how democracy is linked to all aspects of life and society. "The point where democracy and education intersect is the point we call community." (Barber, 1992) Community and civic responsibility are the basic tenets of service-learning. The philosophy of service-learning also represents the intersection of two traditional theories: (1) the American commitment to service; ( i.e., ideas from the writings of Thomas Jefferson) to promote feelings of concern, care, and responsibility for one�s community (2) experiential education pedagogy- learning by doing. These ideas or philosophies are evident today; e.g. President Clinton�s mention of service in his State of the Union Address and the investment made to expand Americorps, Senior Service Corps, and AmericaReads. American philosopher John Dewey believed that it was essential for effective education to include active student involvement in learning. Service-Learning challenges students to become active participants in their community. They must discover the connections between ideas or academic objectives and the service experience. A service-learning classroom does not function as a "bank of knowledge" where the students act as bank accounts that educators "deposit" information through lectures. A service-learning classroom employs the community to educate through valuable and meaningful service projects. Dewey believed that the community was an essential component of education because the knowledge learned in schools must be applied to the "real-world" for the advancement of the students and the betterment of society. (Dewey, 1916)
In 1989, 70 organizations devoted to the dissemination of service-learning information developed the 10 Principles of Good Practice. Although there are many methods used to implement service-learning, this Wingspread Report sponsored by the Johnson Foundation, Inc. offers these 10 guiding principles as "essential component for good practice." (Wingspread Report, 1989) All service-learning programs are unique to the community in which it is implemented. Therefore, these 10 suggestions are not steadfast, but may direct your efforts for effective service-learning programs.
The 10 Good Practice for Combining Service and Learning:
An effective program:
- 1. Engages people in responsible and challenging actions
for the common good.
2. Provides structured opportunities for people to reflect critically on their service experience.
3. Articulates clear service and learning goals for everyone involved.
4. Allows for those with needs to define those needs.
5. Clarifies the responsibilities of each person and organization involved.
6. Matches service providers and service needs through a process that recognizes changing circumstances.
7. Expects genuine, active, and sustained organizational commitment.
8. Includes training, supervision, monitoring, support, recognition, and evaluation to meet service and learning goals.
9. Insures that the time commitment for service and learning is flexible, appropriate, and in the best interest of all involved.
10. Is committed to program participation by and with diverse populations.
With her work as the Executive Director of the National Society for Internships and Experiential Education (NISEE), Jane Kendall has became an authority of service-learning philosophy and methodology.. Kendall�s and NSIEE�s mission is to start, strengthen, and support courses or programs that combine service and academics for life-time learning. She and her associates have created a comprehensive list of standards for service-learning programs. This list of standards will be a helpful guide for the "brainstorming" and planning stage of service-learning projects
- · Effective service-learning efforts strengthen
service and academic learning.
· Service-Learning programs provide concrete opportunities for students to learn new roles in an environment which encourages risk-taking and rewards competence.
· Preparation and reflection are essential elements in service-learning .
· Students� efforts are recognized by their peers and community they serve.
· Students are involved in planning.
· The service students perform makes a meaningful contribution to the community.
·Effective service-learning integrates systematic formative and summative evaluation.
· Service-Learning connects school and its community in new and positive ways.
· Service-Learning is understood and supported as an integral element in the life of the school and the community.
· Skilled adult guidance and supervision is essential to the success of service-learning.
· Pre-service and staff development which includes the philosophy and methodology of service-learning best ensures that program quality and continuity are maintained. (Kendall, 1990)
Barber, Benjamin. (1992.). An Aristocracy for Everyone. New York: Ballantine.
Cohen, Jeremy. (1994.). "Matching University Mission With Service Motivation: Do the Accomplishments of Community Service Match the Claims?" Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning. Fall 1994: Volume 1, 98-104.
Dewey, John. (1916.). Democracy and Education. New York: The Free Press.
Eyler, Janet, Dwight E. Giles, Jr., John Braxton. (1997.) "The Impact of Service-Learning on College Students." Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning. Fall 1997: Volume 4, 5-15.
Honnet, Ellen Porter and Susan J. Poulsen. (1989.) A Wingspread Special Report. Principles of Good Practice for Combining Service and Learning. Racine, Wisconsin: The Johnson Foundation, Inc.
Kendall, Jane C. (1990.) "Combining Service and Learning: An Introduction." Combining Service and Learning: A Resource Book for Community and Public Service, Volume 1 Raleigh, NC: National Society for Experiential Education.
National and Community Service Act of 1990. Public Law 101-610. (Amended in 1993)