Digital Commons Network^™

Service Learning Standards: Draft Interim Content And Performance Standards, California Department Of Education

Special Topics, General

The Challenge School District Reform Initiative calls on California's educators and parents to embrace a simple but powerful concept: school districts must set high content and performance standards for student achievement-stating clearly and publicly what each student should know and be able to do at the end of each year in each subject area. Schools are challenged to hold themselves accountable for results, reporting precisely how well their students are achieving and how many students are meeting the school district standards.

Action Research In The Service Of Learning, Warren Everett

Special Topics, General

Alma High School has a 9th-12th grade student population of about 720 in a primarily rural setting in Michigan's middle-of-the-mitten. We are considered a low-economic area with more than 40% of the students qualifying for free or reduced lunches. Some light industry remains, but what was the national center of mobile home production is completely gone as well as the linking industries. Student enrollment has dropped by nearly half over the last 20 years. In 1990, 9% of the 0-17 year-olds were Latino, most of whom were poor academic achievers. While our community has a prominent small college and a …

Partners: The Shared Service Experience, Big Brothers/Big Sisters Of America

Special Topics, General

Partners: The Shared Service Experience documents Big Brothers/ Big Sisters of America's (BB/BSA's) first national initiative designed to encourage Big Brother-Little Brother and Big Sister-Little Sister pairs to become partners in community service. Big Brothers/Big Sisters (BB/BS) agencies, and the volunteers they rely on to provide service to children and youth, can have a far-reaching positive effect on local communities. The key is to educate adults and youth about the individual and societal benefits of community service activities. This gives the "Littles" an opportunity to take on "Big" roles by contributing to their neighborhoods.

Usd And Community Partners. .. A Team Approach To Service-Learning, Learn And Serve America

Special Topics, General

The University of San Diego received a Corporation for National Service "Learn and Serve America: Higher Education Enhancement" grant during the 1994-95 academic year. Over 325 students from 18 classes enhanced their classroom learning by integrating course theory with their community service-learning experiences. How and why did this happen?

Midlands Institute For Non-Profit Management - Building A Solid Foundation, 1995, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar)

Publications

Agenda and material from the Midlands Institute for Non-Profit Management - Building a Solid Foundation Conference, July 10-14, 1995.

Journal Of The Community Development Society Vol. 26, No. 02, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar)

Publications

An important function of the Journal of the Community Development Society is to report on research conducted in the field of community development. In particular the research that we report in this journal should have research questions that pertain to the theory and practice of purposive community change. One of the more critical tasks of journal editors, then, is to ensure that proposed articles in fact have appropriate, clear, and relevant research questions. A research question, however, is a multi-faceted creature. As many of us recall from our introductory courses in research methods, there are actually three types of research …

Journal Of The Community Development Society Vol. 26, No. 01, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar)

Publications

As mentioned in previous editions, one of the critical functions of this journal is to facilitate communication between researchers and practitioners working in community development. It is important to not only report on completed research, as is the major task of most research-based journals, but to also include comments from others who have reviewed the journal articles. Since this journal serves the needs of both researchers and practitioners it is necessary to stimulate a continuing dialogue among both groups on common community development topics.

Service Learning And Urban Schools: A Method For Developing Attitudes Reflective Of Social Responsibility, Julianne Price

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Currently, a growing number of our nation's school districts are encouraging students to perform community service. Vermont, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania, for example, all include community service activities as part of their K-12 education plans. Maryland requires all high school students to complete 60 hours of community service prior to graduation. And as part of California's Challenge Initiative, it is expected that by the Year 2004, every student in California will engage in at least one community service or service-learning experience prior to graduation (1996, California Department of Education).

By The People: Citizenship And National Service, The Center For Democracy And Citizenship, Harry C. Boyt

Guides

As an AmeriCorps member, you are part of a national effort, a national movement, to address some of America's most pressing problems -- from education to violence, health care to the environment. AmeriCorps members demonstrate that citizens can be serious players in public life and can build the foundations for a healthy and flourishing society in the 21st century. AmeriCorps broadens our understanding of democracy and citizenship, returning us to our nation's wellsprings.

Senior Center In Seattle Applauds Service-Learning, Nola L. Freeman

Intergenerational

In the fall of 1992, the Pike Market Senior Center, an urban gathering place for a widely diverse community of low income elders, joined 30 other sites in the Seattle area in accepting an invitation from the Carlson Leadership and Public Service Office at the University of Washington. In accepting this invitation, these sites agreed to help the office accomplish the following mission: "To promote, support, and organize opportunities for undergraduates to become involved in effective public service, helping them to mature in their understanding of complex social, philosophical, economic, and political issues, and instilling in them a life-long commitment …

Social Studies Moves Into The Community, Sally Fellows

School K-12

Active Citizenship Today, a program of service-learning pilot projects in the Omaha Public Schools, demonstrates service learning with a corollary, the examination of public policy. Five projects, involving students in geography, history, and government classes, illustrate what students have lead through community service.

A Concern About... Connecting School-To-Work And Service Learning, Council Of Chief State School Officers

School K-12

As interest has grown in school-to-work transition programs and service learning, the commonalities between the two have become increasingly clear. Service learning and school-to-work are forms of experiential education that extend student learning into the community and the worksite. Both provide students with contextualized learning opportunities. Through service learning and school-to-work programs, students engage in learning experiences that help develop organizational, team, and problem-solving skills as well as the competencies and foundation skills identified as important for employability and responsible citizenship (SCANS, 1992; W.T. Grant Commission, 1988).

Service,Learning As An Integrated Experience In Middle School Education: An Introduction To Resources And Information, Dawn Wegter

School K-12

This resource guide outlines 18 service-learning projects throughout the United States focused on middle schools. Listed, in each case, are the project's description, sponsoring organization, the objectives, the project's framework, training information, materials, and ordering information.

Service Learning Projects 1995-1997, Learn And Serve America

Project Summaries

Service Learning Projects 1995-1997 from Glendale Community College.

Random Acts Of Kindness, Martin Kimeldorf

Curriculum

Introducing the concept of random acts of kindness and compassion I recommend that you get a copy of the book " Random Acts Of Kindness.'' (Editors of Conari Press. 1993. Emeryville, CA). Set the stage by reading examples of the random acts of kindness illustrated in the book. This can be followed by a discussion of the following question and the background material related to volunteerism in America. Some background material follows, after this you'll find 4 exercises.

In The Ditch, Pamela J. Olúbùnmi Smith

Goodrich Scholarship Faculty Publications

Originally written as a collection of "observations" and published serially in The New Statesman, In the Ditch, Buchi Emecheta's first novel, is discussed almost always only in relation to Second Class Citizen (1974), its rightful chronological predecessor. Like its companion piece, In the Ditch is heavily autobiographical, following Eme­cheta's own descent into the "ditch" of welfare living and enforced dysfunctionality.

A Policy Study Of Youth Service: Synthesizing Analysis Of Policy Content And Policy Process Over Time, Jean Shumway Warner

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This dissertation uses a case study of youth service proposals to examine how policy is formulated. For this study, youth service refers to federal programs that provide America's youth with opportunities to participate in domestic, non-military, full- or part-time community service activities. A theory is proposed that synthesizes two complementary approaches to the study of policy - process analysis (Kingdon 1984, 1994) and the analysis of policy content (Schneider and Ingram 1990, 1993) --and advocates analyzing policy over time. Four theoretical categories of data -- actors, ideas, opportunities, and strategies -- guide the study.

Students' Reflection On Community Service Learning, Jay D. Anderson

Evaluation/Reflection

Internships are a rapidly expanding educational technique to enhance students' ability to learn. Internships permit and encourage students to experience the real world while receiving academic credit. Seekonk High School in Seekonk, Massachusetts, has an internship program for high school seniors called Independent Study. It allows students to leave school one day a week for the school year and volunteer within the community. Students receive academic credit for their participation in community service learning.

Preflection: A Strategy For Enhancing Reflection, Diana Falk

Evaluation/Reflection

"Preflection" is a strategy designed as a tool to enhance and enrich the reflection process. It is actually a reflective session that is held prior to the service experience. Students are encouraged to imagine what the experience will be like and to express any feelings they might have as they anticipate their involvement. Comments are recorded and are reviewed with the students after the service has been completed. Being able to look back on their pre-service thoughts and feelings and compare and contrast them to the reality of the actual experience has the effect of promoting and focusing discussion, and …

Evaluation System For Experiential Education Programs: Evaluation Guide, Andrew Furco

Evaluation/Reflection

This guide contains: ESEE Description;Timeline; Program Goal & Objectives Forms; Student Pre-Test (designed for each institution); Journal Questions: Faculty Guide & Student Handouts; Student Field Placement Form; Student Focus Group Interview Protocol; Faculty Focus Group Interview Protocol; Community Agency Focus Group Interview Protocol; Community Agency Survey (designed for each institution); Student Post-Test (designed for each institution); and ESEE Checklist.

Reflection As A Tool For Turning Service Experiences Into Learning Experiences, James Toole, Pamela Toole

Evaluation/Reflection

No abstract provided.

Schools And Business Benefit Mutually Through Service Learning, Mike Bookey

Partnerships/Community

Schools are modeled after the industrial factories of yesterday. The goal of the education process is to mass produce standardized, educated citizens and workers. In this factory model, we teach students the hierarchy of decision making, to follow orders, and to work individually. Businesses, however, need graduates who are self-directed, responsible employees, who can solve problems, who can handle computers and the latest technology, and who can work in teams. In this the information age, business can no longer continue to sidestep the need to reformulate the processes and goals of public education.

Education: How Can Schools And Communities Work Together To Meet The Challenge? A Guide For Involving Community Members In Public Dialogue And Problem-Solving, Matthew Leighninger, Mark Niedergang

Partnerships/Community

This guide is designed as a tool to help members of the education sector involve community members in discussions about their local schools and learn how to become involved in the process of improving education in their community. The first half of the guide presents basic material for conducting a four- to seven-session discussion program based on the study circle model. Materials dealing with the following discussion topics are included: how schools affect communities and community members' lives; what community members want graduates to know and be able to do; how schools can meet every students' needs, make schools safer, …

Service Learning And Curriculum Transfusion, Irving H. Budchen

Service Learning, General

Newcomers to service learning, caught up by its initial successes, are frequently not aware that service learning is capable, with appropriate long-term structuring, of exhibiting developmental stages that feed into patterns of academic growth.

Inclusion And Community Service Learning: A Partnership, Mary Chamberlain

Service Learning, General

Teachers and students, already burdened by seemingly overwhelming curriculum demands, are seeing more areas of study moved into the schools as a result of today's societal needs. Community service learning must not be perceived as yet another burden, but as an integrated part of the curriculum, an enhancement to teaching and learning.

Creating A School And Community Culture To Sustain Service Leaming, Caroline Allam

Service Learning, General

"You guys have always done this stuff for us. It's our town. We're the ones that are going to have to run the town after you old guys are gone. We ought to get a shot at making some deicisions about the future (Lysen 1992, p. 8).

This strong sentiment came from a Bath Junior High School student who was working with peers, teachers, scientists, and other community members to conduct water quality tests on the Kennebec River in Maine. The statement reflects the desire and willingness of young people to work together, to assume responsibility and stewardship for their …

Service Learning, Diversity, And The Liberal Arts Curriculum, Richard Battistoni

Service Learning, General

In the many years I have been teaching, I have attempted to engage students in issues surrounding their place as citizens in a multicultural democracy. In my second year of involvement in AAC&U's American Commitments: Diversity, Democracy, and Liberal Learning project, I have become acquainted with the perspectives of faculty from different disciplines and institutions and with a wide array of excellent multicultural materials and curricula; but even the best of curricula tend to be somewhat abstract.

Community Service Learning Is A Foregone Conclusion At The Lincoln Elementary School, Michelle Boorstein

Service Learning, General

For the staff at Lincoln Elementary School in Springfield, Massachusetts, articulating the many ways in which community service learning affects their school is nearly impossible. The principal says he doesn't require people to do community service. Yet, on any given day, students all over the school are learning through service projects.

Inside Ncr: Detroit Cardinal Adam Maida's Proposal For Mandatory Social Service Duty For Students In Catholic Colleges, Tom Fox

Special Topics, General

Detroit Cardinal Adam Maida last week unveiled a creative and intriguing proposal. He suggested forming a kind of urban Peace Corps that would put college students to work in the city's soup kitchens and other social agencies.

The new cardinal, speaking at an interfaith breakfast in his honor, said he and Catholic college officials want to incorporate social service into the curriculum.

College Credit For Community Service: A "Win-Win" Situation, Janet Patterson Fleischauer, John F. Fleischauer

Higher Education

We need only look at the newspapers today to know that insufficient numbers of college and high school graduates are seriously considering social service careers to meet community needs. Job applications are down at human service agencies. Twenty-first century slogans have not helped charitable fund drives meet goals of past years. Education is being challenged to respond to a social deficit in preparing citizens for community service.