Service-Learning: Definition, Impact, and Student Development

Introduction: Seeing and Being Seen

An old adage asserts that people remember what they see; they understand what they do. Freeman and Jackson (2007) note this insight in their book UnCommon Sense About Learning. Just as the sounds one hears and the words one speaks have consequences, the things one sees in life also birth responses. One primary component contributing to students feeling included in school relates to them feeling seen.

In the first of a three-part report on service-learning in a small school setting titled "What Would It Look Like If All Students Felt Included?", Frodge (2004) reports that teachers discussed how they currently see students. Teachers typically notice students who routinely act out and demonstrate behavioral issues or those failing classes. But what about students who behave well or are marginally successful? Frodge quotes the planning teachers: "We wanted to develop ways to 'see' all students and thereby create a better sense of school and community." In service-learning, participants are seen as they see and begin to better understand concerns and challenges in their community.

The literature reveals that in addition to academic and personal development benefits, participation in service-learning may strengthen students' interpersonal and social realms. In the area of personal development, students report increases in self-confidence, self-esteem, leadership skills, personal decision-making skills, career benefits, and personal growth. Service-learning participation reportedly also contributes to helping students perceive school and their academic responsibilities in more positive ways, positioning them to visualize themselves as valuable resources in and for their communities.

Service-Learning Definition and History

Although a number of individuals and organizations have endeavored to define service-learning and purport similar perceptions, numerous variations exist. McPherson (2010) defines this model of learning as "a method of teaching through which students apply their academic skills and knowledge to address real-life needs in their own communities." Another source depicts service-learning as "a teaching and learning tactic that assimilates meaningful community service and instruction with reflection to enhance the participant's learning experience, while teaching civic responsibility and strengthening communities" (National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, 2011).

In the book Service-Learning and Community Engagement: Cognitive Developmental Long-Term, Stelljes (2008) reports that the Corporation for National and Community Service has defined service-learning as 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 community; the service is integrated into the student's academic curriculum or provides structured time for the student to think, talk, or write about what the student did and saw during the process; it provides students with opportunities to use newly acquired skills and knowledge in real-life situations in their own communities; and it enhances what is taught in school by extending student learning beyond the classroom and into the community, helping to foster the development of a sense of caring for others.

Service-learning helps students perceive themselves not as problems but as solutions to problems. In the phenomenological study "Service Learning: What Motivates K–12 Teachers to Initiate Service-Learning Projects?", Krebs (2008) explains that service-learning comprises an educational tactic that incorporates student preparation, service to the community, and reflection with links to the academic curriculum. In addition, service-learning pedagogy contains four critical phases when implemented in the classroom: preparation, action, reflection, and demonstration/celebration. Involving students in service-learning activities enables an instructor to see a reflection of the positive effects that service-learning has had on the lives of their students.

Stern (2008) asserts that utilizing the service-learning method positively impacts both the academic achievement of students and their personal development. The following timeline highlights significant dates in the development of service-learning:

1903 – Cooperative Education Movement founded at the University of Cincinnati
Circa 1905 – William James and John Dewey develop intellectual foundations for service-based learning
Circa 1915 – Folk Schools in Appalachia become two- and four-year colleges with work, service, and learning connected
1933–1942 – Through the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), created by Franklin D. Roosevelt, millions of young people serve terms of 6 to 18 months to help restore the nation's parks, revitalize the economy, and support their families
1944 – The GI Bill links service and education
1965 – College work-study programs established
1970 – The Youth Conservation Corps engages 38,000 people age 14 to 18 in summer environmental programs
1979 – "Three Principles of Service-Learning" published in the Synergist
1995 – Service-Learning network on the internet established
2001 – First International Conference on Service-Learning Research held at Wingspread; conference on student civic engagement

Effective Service-Learning Components

In the publication Service Learning: Three Principles, Sigmon (1979) asserts that service-learning simultaneously focuses on participants who serve as well as those being served. Sigmon's three principles include the following:

Those being served control the services provided; those being served become better able to serve and be served by their own actions; those who serve also are learners and have significant control over what is expected to be learned.

Frodge (2004) reports the following reasons why teachers have decided to participate in service-learning. Service-learning:

Helps decrease feelings of frustration and isolation that teachers experience; presents ways students can receive more personal attention; discerns common links between subjects; provides students with a better sense of school identity; gives teachers additional opportunities to relate to their students; decreases fragmentation in the school's curriculum; enhances relationships between parents and teachers; and complements student learning.

Student Engagement and Learning Models

When community-based service-learning is implemented well, Roehlkepartain (2009) asserts that it offers a number of positive outcomes for students, teachers, service beneficiaries, sponsoring organizations, and broader society. Benefits for youth participants include enhanced contact with opportunities and supports, increased self-efficacy as they recognize their positive impact on real social challenges, improved ability to plan projects and solve problems, and improved civic engagement attitudes and behaviors. Schools benefit from increased youth engagement, cultivated community connections, and enhanced learning levels. Communities, service recipients, and society gain through met real needs, nurtured positive relationships with youth, youth perceived as resources rather than problems, and the emergence of a new generation of caring, experienced citizens and volunteers.

During the article "Part Two: What Would It Look Like If All Students Felt Included?", Frodge (2005) reports that teachers engaging students in service-learning introduce them to Kolb's Learning Cycle. In the book Informal Learning: A New Model for Making Sense of Experience, Davies (2008) explains that David A. Kolb, Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Weatheread School of Management, defines learning as "the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience." Davies also notes that although children and adults both learn from experience, children typically do not have preconceptions that may impede learning. Kolb developed a regularly implemented learning model comprising four elements: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation.

In "Part Three: What Would It Look Like If All Students Felt Included?", Frodge and Lynass (2005) report that the first year of service-learning implementation included changing the school's traditional 25-minute silent reading class into a student advisory time in which students and teachers engaged in conferences regarding academic issues, goal-setting strategies, and social issue consideration. To increase students' abilities to work together, the groups performed community-building activities. Participants met with struggling students to help them realize they were members of a team with a unified purpose. Later, this service-learning group completed an interdisciplinary study on homelessness, which evolved into engaging students through service-learning projects.

To develop high-quality service-learning projects that students readily identify with requires schools to be concerned with community concerns. In the book A Gateway to Fostering Civic Responsibility: Creating a Cyber Bullying Prevention Program in Our Community, Guigno (2011) stresses that to implement successful service-learning, both staff and faculty must trust and respect students and demonstrate and encourage constructive directives. In the book A Service-Learning Model for At-Risk Adolescents, Nelson and Eckstein (2008) emphasize that "the most successful service-learning projects are guided by youth voice and include a strong reflection component." Students need to have their voices heard and be seen; they also need to listen and see the needs and challenges in the community they can address.

Community service capitalizes on the habits and skills of volunteerism. Service-learning, however, emphasizes both service and learning. By applying classroom content to community settings, service-learning is a way to provide authenticity and purpose for classroom learning. Ideally, in service-learning:

Impact on School and Community

Both learning and service enrich the participant's learning while simultaneously impacting the community in positive ways; as students become actively engaged and address community concerns, they learn more effectively; what students learn in class enhances the caliber of the service they provide; and facts relevant to the discipline facilitate student learning with reflection on the service activity integrated into the course so that perceptions of experiences are supported with study.

Students need to be challenged that integrative outcomes typically require determination, invested interest, social and interpersonal knowledge, specialized skills, competent communication, commitment, patience, and hard work. In the paper "Service-Learning and Negotiation: Engaging Students in Real World Projects That Make a Difference", Kenworthy-U'Ren (2003) points out that participation in service-learning projects helps students recognize that problem-solving involves a multifaceted process. As a pedagogical tool, service-learning is designed to encourage students to constructively think through classroom-based skills and apply them to complex situations in fluid environments. During service-learning projects, students transition from basic theoretical preparation and actively engage in social experiences.

Conclusion: Learning with Heart and Purpose

Florida: Elementary school students investigated the consequences following natural disasters. Participants designed a kit families could utilize to collect valuable papers should an evacuation arise.

Pennsylvania: Middle school students studied the health consequences of lack of exercise and poor nutrition. The students conducted health fairs, created a healthy cookbook, and opened a fruit and vegetable stand for the school and community.

West Virginia: Girl Scouts examined wetlands, focusing on their biological complexity and diversity. As they learned of the need to eliminate certain invasive species, these scouts monitored streams, compiled information, and presented their findings to the Town Council.

Michigan: University students sought to support struggling local non-profit organizations in challenging economic times. Participating graduate communication students strengthened their skills while providing a range of public relations services in partnership with community members, developing press kits and managing event coordination.

In Service-Learning and Community Engagement: Cognitive Developmental Long-Term, Stelljes (2008) investigates whether immersion in and contact with service-learning programs relates to cognitive development. Students participating in service-learning where they provide direct service involving a psychological or emotional connection with community members stimulates an evaluation of the participant's personal place in society. Students who responded to these emotions engaged in service more often and with stronger commitment. A number of intervening components contribute to creating exemplars that stimulate the interest necessary for developing cognitive skills. These include exposure to direct service experiences and reflection on potential consequences prior to actually participating in a service-learning program.

Participants in some service-learning projects incorporate video documentaries into the experience as this media format opens groups and communities to others, preserves history, and shares stories. In the article Video Documentaries as Interdisciplinary Student Service-Learning Projects, Blundo and Bolduc (2001) assert that video documentaries help foster intimacy between participating students and bond them with community members. This intimacy and sharing helps break down personal barriers and develops both learning and civic commitment.

Stevens (2008) asserts that three ways exist to engage young people: persuasion, compulsion, and attraction. In Service Learning for Health, Physical Education, and Recreation: A Step-by-Step Guide, Stevens contends that when one preaches to the young, "this is a hook without a worm." When one orders them to volunteer, "that is the devil." When one tells youth "you are needed"—the message inherent in service-learning—Stevens observes that "that hardly ever falls."

Stevens recommends that teachers prepare the foundation for service-learning projects by determining: learning goals during the project; the scope of what students can feasibly do or cannot do; the best project to commit to; and ways to use personal contact to establish solid relationships with clients.

Stevens (2008) also identifies three possible outcomes: "First and foremost, students can learn something about themselves, about their community, and about pressing social issues. Second, students can learn nothing. A group can feed the homeless yet remain unaffected by the experience. Third, students can learn the wrong lesson—prejudices and stereotypes can be reinforced or created while on a poorly planned service outing."

Ideally, service-learning will help increase the number of students who see and address needs in their communities with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts. In turn, as students participate in service-learning and are seen as part of their community's resources for solutions, they will also see and begin to better understand concerns and challenges in their community.

When teachers speak about their experiences in implementing service-learning, they use such terms as "motivational, rejuvenating, purposeful, gratifying, heartwarming, relevant, exciting, and necessary." These reflections underscore the transformative potential of service-learning for both students and educators, demonstrating its power to create meaningful, lasting change in schools and communities.