Service Learning Commons^™

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 …

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 …

The Community Is Their Textbook: Maryland's Experiment With Mandatory Service For Students, Suzanne Goldsmith

School K-12

At its best, service learning enriches both students and their communities. But creating good programs isn't easy.

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 …

"...And Justice For All": Community Service-Learning For Social Justice, Rahima Wade

Special Topics, General

Community service-learning, the integration of school or community-based service activities with aca­demic skills and structured reflection, is a growing movement in the field of education nationally. With funding and initiatives at the federal, state and private organizational levels, service-learning programs have proliferated in the nation's K-12 classrooms, as well as in colleges and universities.

Need To Update Your Information Technology? Try Service Learning, Robin A. Alexander

Partnerships/Community

While the need for information in the nonprofit sector is great, shortages of time, staff, money, and expertise make it hard to use information technology effectively. The result is often a vicious cycle in which staff time is spent compiling information manually when a simple database could dramatically speed the process. But there's no time to create it.

At A Glance: What We Know About The Effects Of Service-Learning On College Students, Faculty, Institutions And Communities, 1993- 2000: Third Edition, Janet Eyler, Dwight E. Giles Jr., Christine M. Stenson, Charlene J. Gray

Higher Education

"At A Glance" summarizes the findings of service-learning research in higher education over the past few years and includes an annotated bibliography. It is designed to provide a quick overview of where we are in the field today and a map to the literature.

At A Glance: What We Know About The Effects Of Service-Learning On College Students, Faculty, Institutions And Communities, 1993- 2000: Third Edition, Janet Eyler, Dwight E. Giles Jr., Christine M. Stenson, Charlene J. Gray

Bibliographies

"At A Glance" summarizes the findings of service-learning research in higher education over the past few years and includes an annotated bibliography. It is designed to provide a quick overview of where we are in the field today and a map to the literature.

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 …

Learning With A Purpose: Academic Service-Learning Curriculum, Dale Rice, Kathy Hurst, Joanne Caniglia

Curriculum

The Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development Program is authorized under Title II of P. L. 103-382. It provides institutions of higher education the opportunity to partner with K-12 teachers and administrators to assist with professional development through sustained, high-quality professional development activities in mathematics, science, reading, and other areas of the core academic curriculum.

The Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development project shared here was undertaken by Eastern Michigan University and Romulus Community Schools to provide Romulus teachers professional development to integrate the teaching methodology of academic service-learning into their mathematics and science curriculum. The goal was to increase academic achievement …

Technology As A Mirror, Judith A. Ramaley

Higher Education

IN CYBERSPACE instructors are more exposed, vulnerable, and less able to retain a veil of superior knowledge and expertise that has given scholars a sense of identity. We can, however, deepen our understanding, authentically practice the disciplines that we love, and enter new relationships to the learners who entrust themselves to our care. This I learned from faculty I consulted at the University of Vermont. And this is how technology can influence--and further--the aims of education.

Recent Dissertations On Service And Service-Learning Topics: Volume Ii, Robert D. Shumer, Ann Treacy

Bibliographies

This is the second edition of the Learn and Serve America National Service-Learning Clearinghouse review of dissertations on service, service-learning, and related topics. In the first edition we identified approximately 110 studies, limiting the search to studies conducted from 1990 to the present. In this volume we provide information and abstracts on more than 200 studies- and expand the time they were produced to periods prior to 1990. Some date as early as the 1970s.

The goals for doing this literature review are many. First, we want to continue to dispel the notion (as mentioned in the first version) that …

Student Ownership Of Service-Learning Projects: Including Ourselves In Our Community, Tammy V. Abernathy, Kathryn M. Obenchain

Disabilities

Service-Learning projects can be an effective tool to actively engage students with learning disabilities while also providing needed community service. This article details a five-phase construction plan designed to guide students through the process of planning service learning projects with students responsible for all steps and the teacher assuming the role of facilitator and guide. Service-Learning projects are encouraged as a means of including students with disabilities in their communities while building academic skills and assuming responsibilities.

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 …

Maximizing Civic Learning And Social Responsibility, Arthur Chickering

Higher Education

In August 1999, the Presidents' Fourth of July Declaration on the Civic Responsibility of Higher Education, drafted by a select group of scholars and college presidents that was convened by Campus Compact and the American Council on Education (ACE), hit the streets. It said,

"We have a fundamental task to renew our role as agents of our democracy. This task is both urgent and long-term. There is growing evidence of disengagement of many Americans from the communal life of our society, in general, and from the responsibilities of democracy in particular. We share a special concern about the disengagement of …

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 …

The Meaning And Value Of Service In The Scholarly Work Of Education Faculty At Mississippi Public Four-Year Institutions, Thomas Joseph Schnaubelt

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning Mississippi education faculty give to the concept of service within their scholarly work and examine the relationship between faculty definitions, reward structures, and service activity. Survey results from 131 faculty members (45% of the sample) and focus group data from a few faculty members at each campus relating to education faculty activities, perceptions, and attitudes were collected and compared with national data. Definitions and typologies of professional service were compared to other state and national data related to professional service, and attempts were made to identify specific performance benchmarks related …

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) …

Implementing A Web-Based Adaptive Senior Exit Survey For Undergraduates, Jeffrey P. Adams, Timothy F. Slater

Evaluation/Reflection

As part of an institution-wide reform initiative at Montana State University, an adaptive, senior exit survey was developed and delivered via the World Wide Web. Individualized surveys were automatically generated for students so that questions particular to specific major and non-major courses could be administered as well as questions regarding university services. The principle advantages of providing a survey in this format include the ability for students to enter extended student-supplied responses to questions using the keyboard, the use of sampling techniques to target questions to specific student groups, and the delivery of individualized survey results privately to department administrators.

A Case Study Analysis Of Serial Killers With Military Experience: Applying Learning Theory To Serial Murder, Tammy Castle

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Tammy Castle on March 21, 2001.

Taking The Lead: A Preliminary Proposal For A K-12 Service-Learning Leadership Organization, Academy For Educational Development

School K-12

Service-learning's advocates are passionate about its potential as an educational reform strategy benefiting students, schools, communities, and the nation. They know that integrating service into core academic curriculum is a powerful way of engaging students' hearts and minds. By combining highly effective teaching strategies with support for students' acquiring an ethic of caring and community responsibility, service-learning does what few other pedagogies can do: it boosts students' academic achievement while also strengthening their civic-mindedness and career preparation. The American public wants students to have this kind of education. According to a new poll conducted by Roper Starch Worldwide, Americans agree …

The Dynamic Tensions Of Service Learning In Higher Education: A Philosophical Perspective, Adrianna Kezar, Robert A. Rhoads

Higher Education

Senior faculty in a peace and justice program at a small liberal arts college reject the efforts of a student affairs professional to help the faculty connect their teaching to practice through service activities in the local community. One faculty member openly wonders how "out-of-class" activities such as community service have anything to do with interdisciplinary theories of social justice. A director of an office of community service is upset because the provost has decided to develop a Center for Community Service Learning. The director sees this as an attempt to usurp the good work of student affairs and feels …

From 19th Century Social Reform To 21st Century School Improvement: A Community Service-Learning Quilting Project For Middle School Students, Irene S. Laroche, Leslie Kelly, Cindy Tuttle

Curriculum

From 19th Century Social Reform to 21st Century School Improvement: A Community Service-Learning Quilting Project for Middle School Students by Irene S. LaRoche, Leslie Kelly, and Cindy Tuttle is the fourth in a series of exemplary curriculum units on social studies and service learning developed by public school teachers and compiled by the Regional Information Center at the School of Education, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Renewing The Civic Mission Of The American Research University, Barry Checkoway

Higher Education

Should the American research university have a strategy for renewing its civic mission in a diverse democratic society and, if so, what should it be?

Many American research universities were established with a civic mission to prepare students for active participation in a diverse democracy and to develop knowledge for the improvement of communities. Today, however, it is hard to find top administrators with consistent commitment to this mission, few faculty members consider it central to their role, and community groups that approach the university for assistance often find it difficult to get what they need.

Building Citizenship: How Student Voice In Service-Learning Develops Civic Values, William Morgan, Matthew Streb

Service Learning, General

Objectives. Though many decry the decline in political participation and interest, few academic studies present a clear approach to help reverse these trends. This paper examines the impact of service-learning programs on students’ self-concept, political engagement, and attitudes toward out-groups. Methods. The data come from a pre and post survey given to more than 200 high school students in 10 different schools. We use Huber regression to assess the impact of student voice in the service-learning project on six dependent variables. Results. We show that if students are involved in service-learning projects in which they have a high degree …

Institutionalized Service-Learniing In The 50 States, Kathy Anthes

Service Learning, General

Service-learning is a teaching method that combines service to the community with classroom curriculum. Service-learning is more than merely community service. It is a hands-on approach to mastering subject material while fostering civic responsibility. On a programmatic level, service-learning in America is thriving. Through funds from the Corporation for National Service, almost every state has resources and some level of a service-learning program. Although practitioners and other service-learning advocates have long regarded service-learning as a way to increase student achievement and student civic engagement and decrease a host of problems, such as drop-out rates and school crime and violence, there …

Choosing A Life Of Service, Ariel Zwang

Special Topics, General

In an age of material excess, it has become a challenge to reorient the Jewish community towards service work. Throughout the community, many parents encourage their children to pursue lucrative careers at the expense of less profitable positions in service fields. There is even a tacit stigma associated with careers in helping others, as compared to the social prestige of high-wage jobs or the intellectual prestige of academia and science. Despite this, as the following article indicates, tile satisfaction of choosing a life of service can more than make up for these difficulties.

United We Serve: A Call To Universal Jewish Service, Maggi G. Gaines, Sara Paasche-Orlow

Special Topics, General

We have reached a turning point in American Jewish history. Now that large segments of our community are living successful, integrated lives, we have an opportunity to align ourselves behind service to enrich Jewish life and to effect prophetic change in the world. In Pirke Avot (Ethics of the Fathers), Rabbi Tarfon admonishes us, "You are not obliged to finish the task, neither are you free to desist from it." The usual interpretation is that our task is bigger than any of us in terms of the quantity of work that must be done. Rabbi Tarfon's dictum, however, also refers …

Promoting Service Learning Via Online Instruction, Greg Bennett, Frederik P. Green

Higher Education

Service learning and online instruction are both important and much debated topics in higher education. Many professors and colleges are attempting to use service learning and online instruction as effective learning tools for their student clientele. Both topics are being written about exclusively in professional journals, as educators grapple with how lo implement these two effective means of learning into class content. The purpose of this manuscript is to discuss service learning and online instruction in a symbiotic educational relationship. The authors discuss the efficacy and benefits of service learning and online instruction, and request ways to incorporate these techniques …

The Bridging Role Of The Community Service Director On The Engaged Campus, Joann Campbell

Higher Education

Declines in civic participation, low voting rates among 18-25 year olds, dwindling federal support for social services, and deficit state budgets have created a climate in which higher education must make a case for the value it adds to society through applications of research and teaching. National and state organizations (such as Campus Compact and state Compacts) dedicated to supporting a culture of service in higher education articulate the university's role as a collective citizen, whose priorities include linking scholarship to community-based needs, using the resources of the college faculty for professional local service, and utilizing federal work study, America …