Digital Commons Network^™

A Meta-Analysis Of Service Learning Research In Middle And High Schools, Amy E. White

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This study examines the relationship between service learning innovations and improved academics, self-concept, and social or personal growth in middle and high school students. Meta-Analysis is employed to arrive at effect-size estimates for each construct. A historical overview of service learning is presented and a detailed description of the study selection process is provided. The data revealed a moderate relationship between service learning participation and academics, self-concept and social or personal growth in middle and high school students. The findings are presented, and some appropriate conclusions are drawn. A discussion of the implications of these findings and recommendations for future …

Community Perspectives In Higher Education Service Leaming And Volunteerism, Andrea Vernon

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This study is a qualitative analysis measuring community perceptions of college student volunteers and service learners. The purpose of the study was to examine college student service learning and volunteer activities from the community perspective through data gathered from community agency personnel who work directly with college student volunteers who are serving to meet the needs of youth.

Personnel from 15 community youth service agencies in seven Montana communities were interviewed to determine (a) how agencies ensure and measure the quality and effectiveness of college student volunteer service, (b) the impacts that college student volunteers have at the youth service …

Service Learning: Discovering Effective Communication Strategies By Emphasizing The Community's Perspective, Elizabeth Oppe

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Service learning is a broadly defined term that may encompass a spectrum of projects and course work ranging from acts of charity to activism for social change. "The aim of service learning is always to heighten awareness in our communities that we have the capacity to both learn from and serve each other... and work toward a more just and egalitarian society" (bttp://www.invcol.pdx.edulic.htm). Another description of service learning from Brevard Community College's The Power (1994) explains that, for many community organizations, students augment service delivery, meet crucial human needs, and provide a basis for future citizen support. The Power depicts …

Cultural Aspects Of Preschool Education: Ojibwa, Odawa And Potawatomi Indian Children's ''Ways Of Knowing And Communicating'' In Early Intervention And Head Start Programs, Lois M. Bissell Jircitano

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This research investigated what Anishinabe cultural values and beliefs are transmitted in the Head Start and Early Head Start oft he Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, and how Anishinabe values and beliefs affect instructional communications, teacher/student relationships, and the learning styles used by Native teachers in the educational process of Anishinabe children in the preschool situation. The study used an ethnographic approach to identify what informants would describe was their culture among the four Inter-Tribal Preschool programs. Observations completed in the classroom, home and community environment sought to discover how parents, teachers, children and staff in the preschool process use the …

Implementation Of The Chicago Public Schools Service Learning Initiative: The Role Of Teacher Coaches, Elizabeth F. Conlon

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The growth of service leaming during the past two decades is testimony to this method by which young people learn and develop through active participation in service experiences. Legislative initiatives have supported schools in their efforts to involve youth with their local communities through service linked to academic study. In 1984, 9 percent of all high schools offered some form of service learning. By 1999, 46 percent of public high schools alone were using service learning activities (Kleiner and Chapman 1999). At the same time, service learning studies are complicated by the subject's broad-based goals, the varying contexts and age …

Student Perceptions Of Service-Learning In The Community College, Ruben Michael Flores

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

United States Census Bureau projections predict that Whites' share of the population should decline from 75% in 1990 to 68% in 2010. Thus, mechanisms must be employed to facilitate cooperation and support among and across people from different ethnic and racial groups. This examination seeks to determine if service-learning is such a mechanism. The researcher utilized student experiences and perspectives, through a mixed qualitative/quantitative study, to determine the impact that a service-learning course had on a diverse group of students attending an urban community college.

The researcher originally sought to determine whether a community college service-learning course changed students' perceptions …

Pedagogical Effects Of Service-Learning In A Human Exceptionality Course: A Comparison Of Two Approaches, John Clinton Mayhew Jr.

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Service-learning. as a pedagogical approach for increasing social responsibility in students. has increasingly gained acceptance in higher education. With its emphasis on reflection and reciprocity. service-learning combines content-area learning with authentic community-based experiences in order to enhance understanding of the course content and to promote civic responsibility. Although several studies have investigated the effects of service-learning at the college level, few studies have specifically focused on the use of service-learning in special education.

The purpose of this study was to examine the service-learning component of an undergraduate human exceptionality course. One section of the course utilized an unlimited choice (UC) …

The Missing Link: Democratic Citizenship In Service Learning A Case Study Of Undergraduate Course Offerings At A Large Urban University, Michael S. Bittner

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to explore a discrete set of service-learning courses to determine. (1) were they of the type conducive to fostering democratic citizens. and (2) did the coordinating center that supported service-learning advocate it for democratic Citizenship. Sixteen university instructors and two administrative staff members from a coordinating center were interviewed, and documents describing the courses and coordinating center were reviewed. Drawing from the literature. a list of ten criteria for democratic citizenship was assembled, and two sets of questions-one for the instructors and another for the administrative staff-were devised to prompt the response of the …