Successful service learning: the inside track.

Abstract

Provides an overview of what service learning is, the vision and benefits of service learning, keys to successfully implement a service learning project into course curriculum, and describes an example course designed to prepare students to participate effectively in civic life and to address community needs.

Introduction

In his August 24, 2002 letter to fellow Americans, President George Bush, has called on all Americans to dedicate at least two years of their lives to serve others. This letter was a follow-up to his January plea to foster a culture of service, citizenship, civic participation, and responsibility in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. In cooperation with the USA Freedom Corps, the Corporation for National and Community Service, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Points of Light Foundation, a guidebook for engaging America's students in a lifelong habit of service titled Students in Service to America was written. In addition, the guidebook offers information on bringing service to the classroom and tools and resources that are available for implementing service learning projects.

What is Service Learning?

From the Commission on National and Community Service (now the Corporation for National and Community Service) and as defined by the National and Community Service Trust Act (1993), service learning is "a method under which students learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service experiences that meet actual community needs and that are coordinated in collaboration with the school and the community." It works to weave the campus and civic cultures of the college community into dialogue about the needs and resources of both cultures by integrating community service into the curriculum. Service learning, as a form of education, is a key to the formation of ethical and civic-minded individuals. It offers to students an opportunity to learn and serve in a variety of organizational settings. Service learning is widely recognized as a key component of the curriculum, because service is understood as crucial to build civic skills and enhance character (Giles and Eyler, 1994; Mabry, 1998).

Service Learning Vision

The service learning's vision is to change higher education by responding to the student's need for a connection between what he or she learns and how that can make a difference in the world (Boyer, November 1990). Its mission is to connect the resources of the college to social, civic and ethical problems in a community. Advocates of service requirements are saying that they believe service and service learning is an effective pedagogy rooted deeply in the mission of higher education. They believe in its relevance to students' lives, and in its capacity to transform individuals, communities, and institutions (Eyler and Giles, 1999). Service learning provides students a concrete, specific task that permits them to apply what they have learned in class; to learn what competencies they have yet to acquire; to explore career interests; and to develop their competencies by applying and testing them. Service learning uses community service as the vehicle for the attainment of students' academic goals and objectives while serving the needs of a person or group. Further, service learning provides students with opportunities to use newly acquired skills and knowledge in real life situations. It identifies specific learning objectives and goals. It develops intangibles such as empathy, personal values, beliefs, awareness, self-esteem, self-confidence, social-responsibility, and helps to foster a sense of caring for others. Students perform a valuable, significant, and necessary service which has real consequence to the community. The goal of the service is to empower students and those being served. The needs of the community dictate the service being provided.

Benefits of Service Learning

Service learning is a concept that promotes applied learning to real life experiences. Service learning brings enrichment to the community, the student, and the institution. Through service learning, students assist in meeting the needs of community organizations with demonstrable results, while enhancing student academic and civic learning. Service learning builds pride, engages students' natural curiosity to promote learning, and builds a strong understanding that service to others is truly the meaning of a well-rounded education. It has been suggested by a variety of authors, such as Kinsley (1994), that students who are engaged in academic activities outside of the classroom are more likely to "learn more efficiently, more effectively, and remember what they have learned much longer than students who don't" (p. 4).

Keys to Successful Service Learning In the Classroom

Meets a Real Community Need A genuine relationship should be established between the college, faculty, the students, and the community. Students should be able to recognize the value of meaningful partnership and commitment to address community needs. The needs of the community should be understood and appropriately addressed. Faculty should be prepared to guide the learning of the community being served.

Integrates and Enhances Course Curriculum Developing a good service project means matching up a community need and the interests and skills of the students involved. Through service experiences, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of specific academic course objectives. Faculty integrate service experiences as a means to make theoretical concepts real and meaningful for students. Students also learn the relevance of course content outside the classroom.

Provides Structured In-class Reflection Time Reflection is the key to getting meaning from the service experience. Students should be provided with support and opportunities to think critically about their experience and engage in discussion about the significance of their service learning. Faculty members guide and provide time in order for students to make the connection between classroom and community. Students should have the opportunity to reflect both privately and publicly, using many forms of communication. Learning happens through a mix of theory and practice, thought and action, observation and interaction. Reflection allows students to learn from themselves. It is also a time for them to meditate on what they have seen, felt, and experienced, and which aspects of the experience continues to excite, trouble, impress, or unnerve them. Through the process of reflection, students analyze concepts, evaluate experiences, and form opinions. Faculty may use this reflection time to identify the knowledge students have gained through the service learning activity.

Offers Adequate Evaluation Assessing student learning in relation to the service learning requirement must be well thought out. It is best when the community partners, the faculty member, and the students are involved in the evaluation of the service learning activity. Assessment of the service learning activity by the faculty member may include the evaluation of the student's demonstration of a skill, assessment of written work, assessment of a product, assessment of an oral presentation and additional normal course assessment. Assessment by the student may include a summative assessment regarding the overall effectiveness of the service learning opportunity. Boyer (November, 1990) states, "While service projects can generate within students a sense of worth, they must be viewed as part of the educational experience... specifically, service projects should include a written evaluation by the student, linking community activity to classroom theory." (p. 7). Assessment of the service learning project by the community partner may include a combination of formative and summative assessments to help ensure that programs remain responsive to their purposes and participants.

Affords Opportunity For Celebration and Recognition Reflection allows students to show how they value their own efforts, while celebration and recognition shows them how others value their work. It is best when students are recognized for their efforts by people important to the community and to the students. Credit for their achievements, affirmation of the skills they have mastered, and appreciation for the time they have devoted to the community should be acknowledged publicly. This recognition can be done through local newspapers publicizing the work done by students, and/or a culminating activity at the end of the semester.

Additional Considerations

We need to create an environment in which students have as many opportunities as possible to learn and serve, give of themselves, and enter into a caring relationship with others. However, there is an inherent assumption of risk for which all faculty and students are responsible. These risks range from the demands such programs place on faculty members' time, scheduling of students' time with the site's needs, lack of fit between some service learning assignments and class material, and transportation issues, to the quality of the learning activities (Coles, 1993). All students should be fully informed, in advance, of any risks inherent in the service learning activity, and must knowingly consent to undertake such risks. Due care must be taken to foresee dangers to students and precautions must be taken to avoid them. Pre-approved sites and service activities will help to alleviate the risks involved Faculty may want to consider having students sign a waiver of liability written by the institution's attorney (NSEE, 1990). The important thing to remember is that activities and documentation that minimize risk should happen whenever students participate in any program. With these forewarnings in mind, faculty may find this experience to be rewarding for students, the community, and themselves. Questions faculty may ask themselves, as they plan to implement a service learning activity in the curriculum, are:

* Will the service learning opportunity be optional or mandatory?

* How many hours of service will be required?

* To what agencies or fields of interest are students restricted to?

* Will students be excited about the service learning activity?

* Does the project offer opportunities for student leadership development, real learning, sharing, and friendship?

Above all, the service learning activities should be challenging, meaningful, valuable, and necessary.

Service Learning Within an Implied Information Processing Course

Meets a Real Community Need The requirement that students conduct a community service commitment that immerses the student in a significant area of need is a feature of the Implied Information Processing course (a required upper-division course for business education, management information system, and office management majors). The service learning component required a time commitment from the service learning community partner, the faculty member, and the student. Students were presented with a list of possible organizations and businesses that were pre-approved by the faculty member. However, students were allowed to select additional organizations with final approval by the faculty instructor. Each community partner chosen by the students was notified of the service learning project and asked to verify the interest in working with the student in creating a project for organizational use. Participating community organizations were notified of the service learning project, outlining the objectives of the course, methods of monitoring student learning and evaluation, and the expectations of the student and community partner. In cooperation with the community partner and the faculty, students researched the backgrounds of community situations, developed solutions, and established relationships with their chosen organization to address community needs. These interactions gave students an understanding of the needs of the organization, as well as the workings of the organization itself.

Integrates and Enhances Course Curriculum In the Applied Information course, students were taught the following software programs: Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Publisher, and Internet applications. Students were required to complete course assignments using each software application, complete a portfolio of their work, and complete a service learning project. To integrate the students' coursework with the local community, students were to provide a finished project that could be used by the organization. The projects that the students developed were web pages, brochures, presentations, spreadsheets, databases, business cards and letterheads, etc. The projects all had connections to their coursework.

Provides Structured In-class Reflection Time To connect the service activity to learning, students presented a final oral presentation to the class and a written report of the service learning activity was included in the student's portfolio. During class time, students individually described their service learning activity and observations and reflected on their reactions to the experience. Classmates were provided with time to ask questions and make observations regarding the student's experience.

Offers Adequate Evaluation Students' work is critiqued and appreciated by their classmates and by the organization in which they were involved. A letter was sent to the community partners asking them to evaluate the student's performance (quality, initiative, communication, problem solving, dependability, and skill) as well as overall outcomes of the project (quality of partnership--benefit to their organization, communication, value of project, and community connections--value to them and the student). This evaluation was shared with the students. Students were also asked to complete an evaluation of the service learning project (outcomes experienced, learning concepts discovered or reinforced, specific examples of ways knowledge from the course was applied to the project, description of community needs met, an explanation of ways the student was challenged to critically think or problem solve, and suggestions for improvement for future service learning projects). The faculty member assessed the students' performance by evaluating the student's coursework, portfolio, written and oral presentations of the service learning project, and the final product produced.

Affords Opportunity For Celebration and Recognition Celebration included publication in the school and local newspaper, a culminating activity at the end of the semester which involved an oral presentation to the class, and presentation of a portfolio of work completed in the class which included the service learning project. Implementing a service learning project into a classroom promotes Boyer's (1990) scholarship of engagement by integrating community service with teaching and learning. Boyer believed that a caring community is a place where the well-being of each member is sensitively supported and where service to others is encouraged. He goes on to say that an educationally purposeful community is a place where faculty and students share academic goals and work together to strengthen teaching and learning on campus. Connections that students develop through service learning activities play an important role in building community.

Conclusion

In response to the President's Call to Service to all Americans, faculty may help students answer the Call by developing habits of service that meets the needs in their community. Faculty will also be helping them develop responsibility, citizenship, and selflessness. Vibrant and caring communities will be strengthened and sustained through service. Thus, as Goldsmith (1999) notes: "at its essence, service learning has the power to help students learn that each person in our society is needed--and that what they have to offer counts. ...it's a lesson that can't come a moment too soon." (p. 8) Service learning connects students to their community, placing them in challenging situations where they associate with others and accumulate experiences that can strengthen traditional academic studies. Service learning makes classroom study relevant, as students apply their skills in real life situations. Implementing a service learning component into course curriculum makes for a meaningful teaching and learning process. It encourages faculty to recognize student knowledge and experience as a valuable element of the educational process.

References

Boyer, E. L. (1990). Campus life: In search of community. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Boyer, E. L. (November, 1990). Civic education for responsible citizens. Educational Leadership, 48(3), 4-7.

Coles, Robert. (1993). The call of service: Witness to idealism. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston.

Corporation for National and Community Service. (2002). Students in service to America, Washington, D.C.

Eyler, J. and Giles, D. E. , Jr. (1999). Where's the learning in service-learning? San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Giles, D. E., Jr., and Eyler, J. (1994). The impact of a college community service laboratory on students" personal, social, and cognitive outcomes. Journal of Adolescence, 17, 327-339.

Goldsmith, Suzanne E. (June 23, 1995). The community is their textbook, The American Prospect, 6(22).

Kinsley, C. (1994). What is community service learning? Vital Speeches, LXI (2).

Mabry, J. B. (1998). Pedagogical variations in service-learning and student outcomes: How time, contact, and reflection matter. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 5, 32-47.

National & Community Service Trust Act. (1993). Learn & service: service-learning. Retrieved Sep2, 2004 http://www.learnandserve.org/about/service_learning.html.

Barbara J. Limbach, Chadron State College, Ne

Limbach is an associate professor of higher education. She was awarded the 1999 Nebraska State College Teacher of the Year. She earned her doctorate from the University of Wyoming where she studied technology and applied sciences.