Service Learning Commons^™

Tackling Society's Problems In English Class, Jim Burke

Special Topics, General

A high school teacher's impromptu unit on "Social Problems" gave his students an opportunity to develop their writing skills while expanding their concept of community.

Fairy Tale Friends, Mary Chamberlain

Special Topics, General

As students grow into responsible citizens. they need to realize that the quality of their lives is affected by the quality of the relationships in their lives.

This Community Service learning Unit - Fairy Tale Friends - was designed as part of the language Arts, English and Reading, curriculum. Middle School students will work on a Fairy Tale Unit. They will learn characteristics of Fairy Tales and fiction, using strategies of the writing/reading process. and cooperative learning. After the completion of the unit, they will work with elementary students, helping them write Fairy Tales.

Part two of their instruction will …

State Of Service Report: Executive Summary, Minnesota Office On Volunteer Services

Special Topics, General

Since the mid-1980's Minnesota has articulated a comprehensive vision for youth service which calls for the integration of service into the full spectrum of a person's life. Organizations reaching K-12 young people, college students, adult volunteers, and full- and part-time service volunteers in the Minnesota Conservation Corps and other programs would provide service opportunities at every age level for every Minnesotan. We continue to advance toward that vision with important achievements outlined in this report.

Evaluation Of An Intergenerational Service-Learning Project For Undergraduates, Robert G. Bringle, John F. Kremer

Intergenerational

An appropriate objective within a liberal arts approach to education is enhancing students' awareness of attitudes toward their own aging. A combined intervention of intergenerational experience and didactic instruction had a favorable effect on students' attitudes toward older adults i11 general and on students' uie'w of their own later lives. Additional positive consequences are discussed, and suggestions for running similar curricular components are presented.

Elder Mentors: Giving Schools A Hand, Marc Freedman, Natalie Jaffe

Intergenerational

Mentoring is threatening to become a buzzword without meaning. We hear about mentoring for principals, for teachers, for students, for employees in a wide range of businesses and industry. There is mentoring by principals, by teachers, by students, by corporate executives, by members of the community. There is mentoring designed to help adult "mentees" (an ungraceful word) be better administrators, teachers, practitioners, or employees; to help youth adjust to society after incarceration or institutionalization; to do better in school, take good care of their children, not get pregnant in the first place, stay out of jail; stop taking drugs-and on …

Using Csl With Special Education And Reading Resource Students, Barbara Carter Ellis

School K-12

During 1992, as my students and myself created a community service learning opportunity, we were introduced to the fun of researching statistics, to developing our problem-solving skills and to the complexities of geography. But most of all we, as a team, learned ways to improve the ways in which we worked with each other in small groups, in our classrooms and in our community.

"Connections" Volunteer Centers And Schools: Partners For Service-Learning, Volunteer Centers Of Pennsylvania

Partnerships/Community

As interest in school improvement has become an increasingly salient national issue in the 1990's, interest in community service and service-learning as an integral part of education and educational improvement has shown a similar increase. In Pennsylvania, the proportion of school districts offering academic credit for community service has grown from 5% in 1989 to 20% in 1992; the number of school districts requiring community service for graduation has grown from one to seven. A series of national studies and reports including the Carnegie Commission's 'Turning Points," the W. T. Grant Commission's "Forgotten Half," and Dr. Ernest Boyer's influential books.High …

A Multiculturally-Responsive Tenth Grade English Curriculum Nurtures An Appreciation For Individual Differences By Immersing Students In The Lives Of Others, Jayne Alexander

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The goal of a practicum was that high school students in non-academic 10th grade English classes would develop an understanding of and appreciation for cultural differences. The English teacher challenged herself, her peers, her students, and the general school population (a regional high school in a growing community in the northeastern United States) to become more knowledgeable and appreciative of many cultures by expanding her own knowledge of ethnic groups; creating a faculty reading club; developing a curriculum that responsibly presented ethnic groups in a relevant format; designing activities that provided opportunities for interaction with other cultural groups and for …

Curriculum Workshop, Robert D. Shumer

Evaluation/Reflection

This is an introductory workshop on developing curriculum using a student-centered, community-based approach. It is founded largely on the philosophy of John Dewey and represents an approach produced at the Far West Laboratory for Educational Research and Development. It has been implemented in many school districts across the country in the 1970s and 1980s, and is still a very viable approach to curriculum development in the 1990s. It is not specifically limited to service-learning programs; it is applicable to any program where students expect to earn academic credit for learning which occurs outside the classroom. It is intended for use …

The Domestic Volunteer Service Act Of 1973 (As Of October 1, 1993), U.S. Government

Service Learning, General

(a) Because of the long-standing importance of volunteerism throughout American history, it is the policy of the Congress to foster the tradition of volunteerism through greater involvement on the part of individuals of all ages and backgrounds.

(b) The purpose of this chapter is to foster and expand voluntary citizen service in communities throughout the Nation in activities designed to help the poor, the disadvantaged, the vulnerable, and the elderly. In carrying out this purpose, the Corporation for National and Community Service shall utilize to the fullest extent the programs authorized under this chapter, coordinate with other Federal, State, and …

Service- Learning And Forestry, Lei Lane Burrus-Bammel, Gene Bammel, Jack Newhouse

Service Learning, General

Although the topic of "service" appears to have received more attention recently in higher education than in previous years, it is not a new concern. As early as 1869, Charles Elliot, in his Harvard inaugural address, asked, "And what will the University do for the community?" His response was, "It will foster the sense of public duty - that great virtue which makes republics possible." Elliot's premise was that institutions of higher education ought to support those activities which develop generosity, civic mindedness and the capacity for conscientious action. Since the post-Civil War period a number of famous individuals have …

Describing Service-Learning: A Delphi Study, Robert D. Shumer

Service Learning, General

Service-learning is spreading. Congress passed the National and Community Service Act (1990) and states have been implementing service-learning programs in record numbers. With the rapid expansion, people have been asking "Am I doing it right?" or "What is service-learning, anyway?" These are good questions ... ones many have asked for some time.

Bibliography And Annotated Bibliography Of Research: The Effects Of Service-Learning Participation On Students Who Serve, Marilyn W. Smith

Bibliographies

The bibliography portion of this document includes journal articles; ERIC documents; chapters in books; unpublished reports; research in progress; and perspectives and recommendations for the assessment and evaluation of service learning. The annotated bibliography of this document includes journal articles; ERIC documents; chapters in books; unpublished reports; and research in progress.

Clarifying And Measuring Community, Service, And Citizenship, Rutgers University

Service Learning, General

The working group met for the first time at Rutgers University November 22 to 24, 1992 for critical discussions of issues concerning community, service, and learning in the context of education-based service learning programs. The working group's 31 members included representatives from universities, service organizations, foundations, and community activists. Participants worked closely over the two days, meeting in three discreet sessions dedicated specifically to the theory of community and citizenship, the practice of service-based learning, and--with particular reference to service learning-- the measurement of civic outcomes.

California's Serve America Plan And The Landscape Of Reform, Linda Forsyth, Wade Brynelson

Service Learning, General

The California Department of Education has received $1,600,000 under the Serve America subtitle of the National and Community Service Act to award to local partnerships for 1991-92. Considering that California serves some 6 million public and private K-12 students, this is a modest sum. What do we hope to achieve? How realistic are our hopes? This paper discusses Service Learning in the context of a broad landscape of reforms in education and society. These reforms have much to do with our capacity to fulfill our hopes and sustain the service movement.

Teaching Courage: Service Learning At Pathway School, Michelle D. Ioele, Anne L. Dolan

School K-12

Troubled children are rarely afforded the opportunity to view themselves as valuable and worthy. Because they are often in the role of care-recipients, they are not challenged to be, nor do they see themselves as capable of being, caregivers. Although many child and youth programs seek to provide these opportunities, a systematic and effective program for doing so has been lacking.

Citizenship Education And The Public World, Harry C. Boyte

Civic Engagement

We need a conception of citizenship that is active, engaged and adequate to the challenges of our complicated world. Citizens develop, they do not emerge full blown; and their capacities are cultivated only through tough, challenging, serious practical and theoretical education in what Benjamin Barber has well termed the democratic arts. Barber and I agree on the importance of a strong conception of citizenship; on the centrality of civic education to any honest rendering of education in a purported democracy; and on the significant challenge such a view of civic education presents to customary ways of conceiving citizenship, education, and …

Going To The Community, Benjamin Barber

Service Learning, General

Let me offer three points. First, I want to take a few minutes to set the context for a democratic education. I want to cite six or seven key choices that I think anybody who's interested in community service as a vehicle of citizen education needs to face and which we face at Rutgers as do other universities around the the country. Thirdly, I want to address Harry Boyte's thoughtful criticisms of communitarianism.

Linking A City's Culture To Students' Learning, Richard Allen Chase, William G. Durden

Partnerships/Community

The aquarium, the theater, and the zoo are some of the possible "classrooms" in The Baltimore learning Network's model learning community.

Construction Of An Instrument To Assess The Service Learning Model: Establishing Concurrent Validity And Internal Reliability, Christopher Anthony Payne

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

A paper and pencil test was constructed to investigate the existence of phases as identified by the Service Learning Model (Delve, Mintz, & Stewart, 1990). Subjects with no structured exposure to service-learning activities residing in the residence halls at the University of Northern Colorado (URC) (n =70) and subjects involved in service-learning programs coordinated by the Office of Community Service at Colorado State University (CSU) (n=65) participated in the study during the spring of 1992.

Research objectives provided guidelines for developing the test format and Writing clear and understandable items that reflected the affective, behavioral and cognitive ways in which …

Pushing The Boundaries Of Education: The Implications Of A Youth Development Approach To Education Policies, Structures And Collabnrations, Karen J. Pittman, Michele Cahill

School K-12

In recent years there have been an extraordinary number of proposals for comprehensive and intensive changes in school structure, finance, and administration, one indication that this is a time of unprecedent change for schools. One of the forces driving this intense focus on school change is the growing national concern about youth issues and problems. This paper notes the myriad of add-on programs that compete for space in the school day and takes the position that, rather than being seen as merely additive,education and services should be viewed as interactive, and essential to the formation of new effective strategies for …

Teacher Education And Service-Learning, Robert D. Shumer

Service Learning, General

Suggestions for needed educational reform have been made for some time. Reports from the 1970s condemned the isolation of schools from their communities and the lack of student participation in the educational process (Brown, 1973; Coleman, 1974; Martin, 1974; Gibbons, 1976). Similar claims were made in the 1980s, where lack of active learning led to student passivity and inability to relate classroom learning to life beyond the school (Goodlad, 1984; Boyer, 1983; Carnegie Council, 1989; W.T. Grant Foundation, 1988). In the 1990s there is a continued call for an end to this isolation, primarily through inclusion of experiential and service-learning …

Geography And Mutual Understanding: "Harvest Of Hope", Marianne Kenney

Curriculum

The "Harvest of Hope" was an interdisciplinary science/geography project that provided students from two different schools and very diverse backgrounds the opportunity to work in a cooperative community service effort. With teacher coordination from both districts involved in the project, students from an inner-city school and a suburban school planted, tended, and harvested crops on unused school prope11y and donated the food to organizations providing resources to the needy. "Harvest of Hope" was designed to aid the needy of Denver and teach high school students about real-world geography issues. Students also gained knowledge of issues inherent in world agriculture and …

Draft Instructional Framework In Service-Learning For Elementary School, Maryland Student Service Alliance

Curriculum

MSSA wants to ensure that all Maryland students can make a difference in their schools and communities by learning to be responsible citizens. We published the draft instructional framework to help teachers develop a broad range of service-learning experiences.

A Proposal For The Michigan K-12 Service-Learning Center, The Michigan Partnership For New Education

Special Topics, General

The Michigan Partnership for New Education, in collaboration with Michigan State University's College of Education and with several partner universities, proposes to establish a K-12 Service Learning Center, headquartered at Michigan State. The Center would:

1. promote the principles and practices of service-learning in the schools in Michigan generally, through a series of activities ranging from building networks and holding conferences to training teachers, shaping policy and coordinating existing efforts. Such activities would, where possible, be collaborative efforts with other service-learning initiatives in the state. In e this regard, the Center would be a catalyst, switchboard, cheerleader and organizer, tying …

Mandated Service And Moral Learning, Robert K. Fullinwider

Special Topics, General

Recently the Maryland State Board of Education added a new condition for getting a high school diploma: students must perform 75 hours of "service." The activities that count as "service" will be determined by individual districts, and may include everything from tutoring younger students and visiting nursing home residents to working with nonprofit community organizations. The new requirement builds on an already existing voluntary student service program supported by the Maryland Student Service Alliance, a public-private partnership. Although some municipal school systems in the U.S. impose similar requirements, the Maryland school board is the first to adopt a statewide policy.

National And Community Service: Challenges And Opportunities For People With Disabilities To Volunteer In America, Glen W. White

Special Topics, General

The recently implemented National and Community Service Act of 1990 calls for Americans of all race, age, ability, and economic status to return to service in their community. To help facilitate this call to service, the National Commission on Community Service has allocated approximately 70 million dollars in grants. The Act focuses on the involvement of youth, including those who are economically disadvantaged and with disabilities. This paper discusses the challenges and opportunities faced by community service program planners and disability organizations, in their efforts to integrate volunteers with disabilities in service to the community. The paper concludes with a …

Designing Computer-Based Writing Tools For Community Action, David Fleming

Special Topics, General

Most word and information processing systems arc designed for either large institutions or individual users. Institutions, of course, have benefitted greatly from emerging technologies. These users cover the spectrum of our economic, political, social, and cultural life: large corporations, banks, insurance companies, government agencies, schools, universities, armed services, hospitals, the media. Individual users have been more recent beneficiaries of technological advances, and the computer has begun to make inroads into the way people interact with one another, manage their affairs, and entertain themselves.

Administering Maturity: The Emergence Of Youth Service As A Rite Of Passage To Adult Citizenship, Timothy Dolan

School K-12

Over the course of the 1980s, a literature describing a new lost generation in America has caught the popular imagination, fueled to no small extent by the anxiety of aging baby-boomers over their offspring's fate. One manifestation of particular interest at the policy level has been a growing sentiment by opinion leaders in favor of establishing youth service as both a pragmatic remedy for meeting social needs, and as a rite of passage to bona-fide citizenship status.

National And Community Service: Challenges And Opportunities For People With Disabilities To Volunteer In America, Glen F. White

Disabilities

The recently implemented National and Community Service Act of 1990 calls for Americans of all race, age, ability, and economic status to return to service in their community. To help facilitate this call to service, the National Commission on Community Service has allocated approximately 70 million dollars in grants. The Act focuses on the involvement of youth, including those who are economically disadvantaged and with disabilities. This paper discusses the challenges and opportunities faced by community service program planners and disability organizations, in their efforts to integrate volunteers with disabilities in service to the community. The paper concludes with a …