Service learning is most effective for youth when which of the following conditions are met?

Table of Contents Show

Student Benefits of Community Engagement
Faculty Benefits of Community Engagement
College and University Benefits of Community Engagement
Community Benefits of Community Engagement
Models of Community Engagement Teaching
Ways to Integrate Community Engagement into an Existing Course
Other CFT Guides About Community Engagement Pedagogies

The following is excerpted with permission from "Service-Learning: Every Child a Citizen," an issue paper published by the Compact for Learning and Citizenship, a project of the Education Commission of the States.

Service-learning…has to do with what Vito Perrone calls "powerful purposes." It addresses the issue of academic relevance by connecting academic knowledge, skills and concepts with accomplishing an "authentic purpose" in the school and community. In this context, service-learning is an integral part of school improvement and contributes to that effort in the following ways.

Grounded in how learning occurs: Service-learning meets a criterion of school improvement that often is missed. While improvement efforts often focus on financial, political or administrative solutions to education problems, service-learning is rooted in a sound understanding of education itself, taking its cue from how cognition and learning actually occur. Service-learning embodies the belief that knowledge is not merely transmitted from teacher to learner, but rather is gained by the learner through guided interaction with the environment.
Develops critical thinking skills: Through service-learning, students learn to reflect on their experiences and develop critical-thinking skills, such as the ability to bring disparate elements of experience together in meaningful ways, to analyze information for patterns and deeper meaning, and to make evaluations and judgments.
Benefits all students: Because it is an effective pedagogy and not specific to any one curriculum, service-learning supports and deepens the existing curriculum and aligns with national and state standards already in place. No group gets singled out because every student can benefit.
Uses multiple intelligences: Service-learning engages the multiple intelligences identified by Howard Gardner, a core idea in education improvement, especially in curriculum development efforts. Service activities and corresponding reflection can be organized to address multiple ways that students learn. For example, students working with residents in a senior center can read aloud to the seniors, engage them in physical exercise and/or discuss historical events. Student reflections can range from creating a portfolio or journal, writing a song or delivering a speech.
Makes real-world issues part of education: Service-learning presents students with issues and problems that cannot be neatly defined or solved. Encouraging students to "think outside the box" fosters development of problem-solving skills.
Interdisciplinary learning is encouraged: Because service-learning requires students to think across the boundaries of traditional academic disciplines, students become more adept at integrating and applying what they are learning.

Develops workplace skills: Service-learning experiences early and regularly in a student's education help to foster the development of important skills and positive attitudes toward work and the community. Research shows students learn best when they use interdisciplinary concepts and processes to solve ill-defined problems; function as members of multiple groups; use documents and sources of information other than textbooks; create products others can use; relate the work of the classroom to the world outside the school; influence and shape the course of their own learning; and model their performance upon that of competent adults. High-quality service-learning embodies these elements and provides students with rich and positive learning experiences that help prepare them for the world of work.
Promotes equity: By facilitating heterogeneous grouping, service-learning allows students from a variety of backgrounds, ethnic groups, strengths and abilities to work together on real problems that provide unity and purpose beyond the classroom. It also has been found to provide extrinsic motivation for at-risk students, help special-education students develop concrete skills and competencies which often enable them to work alongside their nondisabled peers, and provide a holistic approach that can help immigrant students learn English language and culture.
Fosters appreciation for cultural diversity: Service-learning helps foster in students a greater understanding, appreciation of and ability to relate to people from a wide range of backgrounds and life situations. It provides opportunities for youth not just to reach out to others but also to understand the value of differences among individuals and communities.
Promotes changes in school culture: Service-learning can have a profound effect on the school culture because it creates new relationships between schools and communities. At the same time, the community itself becomes a learning environment that benefits from the schools that its tax dollars support. Service-learning also can create more collaborative relationships among teachers, administrators and other school personnel. When all members of the school community gradually become participants in this new process of learning, they develop a personal and collective stake in making something positive happen beyond the walls of the school.

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by Joe Bandy

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Cite this guide: Bandy, J. (2011). What is Service Learning or Community Engagement?. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/teaching-through-community-engagement/.

Community engagement pedagogies, often called “service learning,” are ones that combine learning goals and community service in ways that can enhance both student growth and the common good. In the words of the National Service Learning Clearinghouse, it is “a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities.” Or, to quote Vanderbilt University’s Janet S. Eyler (winner of the 2003 Thomas Ehrlich Faculty Award for Service Learning) and Dwight E. Giles, Jr., it is

“a form of experiential education where learning occurs through a cycle of action and reflection as students. . . seek to achieve real objectives for the community and deeper understanding and skills for themselves. In the process, students link personal and social development with academic and cognitive development. . . experience enhances understanding; understanding leads to more effective action.”

Typically, community engagement is incorporated into a course or series of courses by way of a project that has both learning and community action goals. This project is designed via collaboration between faculty and community partners, such as non-governmental organizations or government agencies. The project asks students to apply course content to community-based activities. This gives students experiential opportunities to learn in real world contexts and develop skills of community engagement, while affording community partners opportunities to address significant needs. Vanderbilt University’s Sharon Shields has argued that service learning is “one of the most significant teaching methodologies gaining momentum on many campuses.” Indeed, when done well, teaching through community engagement benefits students, faculty, communities, and institutions of higher education. Below are some of the benefits that education researchers and practitioners have associated with community engaged teaching.

Student Benefits of Community Engagement

Learning Outcomes

Positive impact on students’ academic learning
Improves students’ ability to apply what they have learned in “the real world”
Positive impact on academic outcomes such as demonstrated complexity of understanding, problem analysis, problem-solving, critical thinking, and cognitive development
Improved ability to understand complexity and ambiguity

Personal Outcomes

Greater sense of personal efficacy, personal identity, spiritual growth, and moral development
Greater interpersonal development, particularly the ability to work well with others, and build leadership and communication skills

Social Outcomes

Reduced stereotypes and greater inter-cultural understanding
Improved social responsibility and citizenship skills
Greater involvement in community service after graduation

Career Development

Connections with professionals and community members for learning and career opportunities
Greater academic learning, leadership skills, and personal efficacy can lead to greater opportunity

Relationship with the Institution

Stronger relationships with faculty
Greater satisfaction with college
Improved graduation rates

Faculty Benefits of Community Engagement

Satisfaction with the quality of student learning
New avenues for research and publication via new relationships between faculty and community
Providing networking opportunities with engaged faculty in other disciplines or institutions
A stronger commitment to one’s research

College and University Benefits of Community Engagement

Improved institutional commitment to the curriculum
Improved student retention
Enhanced community relations

Community Benefits of Community Engagement

Satisfaction with student participation
Valuable human resources needed to achieve community goals
New energy, enthusiasm and perspectives applied to community work
Enhanced community-university relations

Models of Community Engagement Teaching

What does community engaged teaching look like in practice? There are many variations and each have their usefulness for different applications. According to Kerissa Heffernan, there are six general models. Click on the tabs to explore each model.

In this model, students are expected to have a presence in the community throughout the semester and reflect on their experiences regularly. In these reflections, they use course content as a basis for their analysis and understanding of the key theoretical, methodological and applied issues at hand.

Students relate to the community much as “consultants” working for a “client.” Students work with community members to understand a particular community problem or need. This model presumes that the students have or will develop capacities with which to help communities solve a problem. For example: architecture students might design a park; business students might develop a web site; botany students might identify non-native plants and suggest eradication methods.

These courses are generally designed for majors and minors in a given discipline and are offered almost exclusively to students in their final year. Capstone courses ask students to draw upon the knowledge they have obtained throughout their course work and combine it with relevant service work in the community. The goal of capstone courses is usually either exploring a new topic or synthesizing students’ understanding of their discipline.

This approach asks students to work as many as 10 to 20 hours a week in a community setting. As in traditional internships, students are charged with producing a body of work that is of value to the community or site. However, unlike traditional internships, service internships have on-going faculty-guided reflection to challenge the students to analyze their new experiences using discipline-based theories. Service internships focus on reciprocity: the idea that the community and the student benefit equally from the experience.

Community-based action research is similar to an independent study option for the student who is highly experienced in community work. This approach can be effective with small classes or groups of students. In this model, students work closely with faculty members to learn research methodology while serving as advocates for communities. This model assumes that students are or can be trained to be competent in time management and can negotiate diverse communities.

Students can register for up to three additional/extra credits in a course by making special arrangements with the instructor to complete an added community-based project. The course instructor serves as the advisor for the directed study option. Such arrangements require departmental approval and formal student registration.

Ways to Integrate Community Engagement into an Existing Course

There are many ways to integrate community engagement into an existing course, depending on the learning goals, the size of the class, the academic preparation of the students, and the community partnership or project type. Below are some general tips to consider as you begin:

One-time group service projects: Some course objectives can be met when the entire class is involved in a one-time service project. Arrangements for service projects can be made prior to the semester and included in the syllabus. This model affords the opportunity for faculty and peer interaction because a common service experience is shared. One-time projects have different learning outcomes than ongoing service activities.

Option within a course: Many faculty begin community engagement with a pilot project. In this design, students have the option to become involved in the community-based project. A portion of the normal coursework is substituted by the community-based component. For example, a traditional research paper or group project can be replaced with an experiential research paper or personal journal that documents learning from the service experience.

Required within a course: In this case, all students are involved in service as an integrated aspect of the course. This expectation must be clearly stated at the first class meeting, on the syllabus, with a clear rationale provided to students as to why the service component is required. Exceptions can be arranged on an individual basis or students can transfer to another class. If all students are involved in service, it is easier to design coursework (i.e., class discussions, writing assignments, exam questions) that integrates the service experience with course objectives. Class sessions can involve agency personnel and site visits. Faculty report that it is easier to build community partnerships if a consistent number of students are involved each semester.

Action research projects: This type of class involves students in research within the community. The results of the research are communicated to the agency so that it can be used to address community needs. Action research and participatory action research take a significant amount of time to build relationships of trust in the community and identify common research agendas; however, community research projects can support the ongoing research of faculty. Extending this type of research beyond the confines of a semester may be best for all involved.

Disciplinary capstone projects: Community engagement is an excellent way to build upon students’ cumulative knowledge in a specific discipline and to demonstrate the integration of that knowledge with real life issues. Upper class students can explore ways their disciplinary expertise and competencies translate into addressing community needs. Other community-based classes within the department can prepare the student for this more extensive community-based class.

Multiple course projects: Community engagement projects with one or more partners may span different courses in the same semester or multiple courses over a year or longer. These projects must be broad enough to meet the learning goals of multiple courses over time, and because of this they may have a cumulative impact on both student learning and community development that is robust. Such projects may be particularly suited to course clusters or learning communities within or across disciplines, or course sequences, say, within a major, that build student capacity towards advanced learning and community action goals.

Other CFT Guides About Community Engagement Pedagogies

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