Service-Learning and Civic Education | The Pedagogy of Service-Learning
Service-learning has, as its' essence, a focus on contributing to the common good. The use of service-learning as a teaching method includes a distinct view of the role of K-12 schools and higher education as places not only for learning, but as sites from which students enter the community to apply what they have learned and return benefits they have received. Service-learning assumes that educational institutions have an obligation to both teach their students and address real community needs.
In a sixth grade classroom, students wrote and produced a radio play in which characters were "shrunk" and passed through the parts of a plant to examine the process of photosynthesis. Students performed the play for younger children, and tapes of the play were stored in the school library so that other students could use them in the future.
At Waverly High School in Lansing, HMichigan, high school Spanish students created an Interdisciplinary Travel Simulation for 6th graders. High school students prepared a Mexican "town" for their 6th grade visitors complete with a market, cafe, theater and customs and banking stations. High school students served as customs officials, waiters, clerks, and bankers. For the 6th graders, the goals of the project were to use knowledge from across the curriculum (e.g., Language Arts, Social Studies) to prepare for and take a simulated trip to Mexico.
6th graders were expected to use language arts skills to fill out applications for passports, request travel information, or write notes of thanks. Social studies knowledge provided background on Mexico so that students might "pack" appropriately and choose tours of important sites. Students applied mathematics in calculating exchange rates and mileage. For high school students (who were expected to develop the vocabulary and fluency needed to assume various roles in a simulated setting) the project provided a three-hour opportunity to use continuous Spanish speaking skills with young students.
As the next section will make clear, these service-learning ideas are not
new, but have been a part of American classrooms since the early part of the
20th century.
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A Brief History of Service-Learning
Service-learning traces its origins to the Progressive Education movement of the early twentieth century. Progressive educators like Dewey (1938, 1972) believed that learning must be grounded in experience. True learning would develop from a curriculum of purposeful activities and opportunities for social interaction that were closely linked to community needs. School-based community service was also a key element of the "Project Method" of teaching developed by William Kilpatrick, a follower of Dewey. Kilpatrick, agreeing with Dewey, stated that learning "should take place in settings outside the school and involve efforts to meet real community needs."
School-based community service again attracted the support of educators in
the 1970s. Several committees, such as the National Association of Secondary
School Principals (1972) and the National Panel on High School and Adolescent
Education (Martin, 1976), criticized high schools for their isolation from real
life and their failure to integrate adolescents into adult roles. They recommended
educating adolescents in alternative settings and using community involvement
to increase the relevance of school to adolescents.
With the publication of "A Nation At Risk" in 1983, school and teacher effectiveness
became defining concerns of educators. However, some experts continued to call
for involving youth in school-based service. For example, in High School,
Boyer argued that students need opportunities to "reach beyond themselves and
become more responsibly engaged" (1983, p. 209) and advocated the addition of
a Carnegie unit to the curriculum which would focus on service.
The 1990s has been a period of vital interest in school-based service. For
example, in 1990, the National and Community Service Act became law, followed
by the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993. Growing evidence suggests
that this interest is justified, due to the fact that service-learning is linked
to:
(Final Report-National Evaluation of ServeAmerica, National Evaluation of Learn and Service America School and Community-Based Programs, Interim Report, 1997; Shumer, 1994; Silcox, 1993; Dewsbury-White, 1993; Brill, 1994; Luchs, 1980; Conrad, 1980; Conrad & Hedin, 1982; Rutter & Newmann, 1989; Hamilton & Fenzel, 1988; Crosman, 1989; Waterman,1993; Williams, 1993; Sager, 1978; Krug, 1991; Stockhaus, 1976; Reck, 1978).
A compelling reason to include service-learning in the curriculum of the 1990s
arises from the school's obligation for civic education. Historically, schools
have been considered essential in preparing students for the responsibilities
of citizenship. As Benjamin Barber (1992) noted, "There are certain things a
democracy simply must teach, employing its full authority to do so. Citizenship
is first among them." Or as Boyte and Farr (1997) explain, schools need to view
students as "citizens in the making who have serious public work to do."
Despite its primacy in a democratic society, civic literacy appears to be at
an all time low, particularly among young people. For example, one study of
high school seniors in Pennsylvania who had just completed a civics course found
that most believed that "the main characteristic of democracy was that it leaves
citizens alone." Participation in civic associations and in formal democratic
institutions, such as voting, is lower than in any previous era.
The responsibility for our current low level of civic engagement may be due,
in part, to the nature of civic education in the public schools. 'Civics' education
is typically isolated in social studies departments that focus on a number of
competing topics, such as geography and economics. Instruction in citizenship
has often been limited to the transmission of decontextualized facts about American
government, giving scant attention to democratic concepts and ideals or the
skills necessary for participatory citizenship. Service-learning, which can
be viewed as a "situated learning" approach to citizenship education, can serve
as a powerful alternative to these approaches.
According to Brown, Collins and Duguid (1989), traditional nonformal learning
experiences are more effective than those that occur in school because they
are embedded in particular activities and social settings which give them meaning.
In these kinds of learning activities, learners acquire not only facts, concepts
and skills, but aspects of social practices, such as settings, routines and
roles. Brown and his colleagues argue that school learning environments should
resemble nonformal teaching and learning contexts. That is, they should provide
opportunities for repeated participation in an activity, reflection, and apprenticeship
under an expert practitioner (who acts as a model and coach).
The implication of situated learning for citizenship education is that if students are to acquire the skills and values associated with democratic citizenship, they must be participants in social practices devoted to democratic work. Inherent in a service-learning project are many opportunities for students to observe, practice, and reflect on this kind of work. For example, through working with community members committed to helping the homeless, students will learn how citizens define, analyze, and solve this community problem and others (Procter, 1992). Through working with community government and agencies students can gain an understanding of "how institutions function to fulfill civic needs" (Ridgell, 1993, p. 38). Service-learning projects which engage students in the work of democracy foster interpersonal skills that encourage social participation, such as role taking and negotiation skills. Finally, participation in activity settings devoted to democratic work may help students develop a commitment to subordinating personal needs for the larger public good.
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The Pedagogy of Service-Learning
Traditionally, service-learning has been viewed as part of the larger field of experiential education. Wade (1997) adapted a structure for teaching service-learning based on models of experiential learning (e.g., Kolb). According to this structure, service-learning projects should include preparation, service, reflection, and celebration phases.
In preparation, the instructor identifies the service and learning goals that will be met by the service-learning activity. This is also the point in the project when the instructor, students, and the community partner identify a community need and brainstorm solutions. Preparation involves planning for the project, contacting a site, creating a schedule, obtaining materials, and arranging transportation. Orientation and/or training are also conducted during preparation.
The heart of a service-learning activity is the service project itself.
The project should be one that engages "young people in responsible and challenging
activities for the common good" (Wade, 1997, p. 22). In addition the project
should be collaborative, engaging not only teachers and students but also community
members in designing a project that "is in the best interest of all participants"
(Wade, p. 21).
For students to benefit from service-learning, they must engage in structured
reflection on their experiences. Reflection activities can meet a number
of different learning goals. Through reflection, students can learn to evaluate
their personal biases and stereotypes and apply learning from the project to
class and vice versa. Service-learning can help students construct knowledge
about community resources, institutional processes, and laws or policies relevant
to their service project, and critically analyze the contribution of these features
to social problems, such as inequity.
The final step in a service-learning project is celebration. As Wade
(1997) notes, "When students learn new skills, engage in risk taking, take on
new responsibilities, and offer their hearts and hands to others, it is appropriate
to honor...their efforts" (p. 23). Celebration activities can also garner the
support of administrators, parents, and community for service-learning.
Service-learning can be viewed not only as experiential learning, but as a type
of situated learning devoted to civic education. According to McClellan (1996),
elements of situated learning include stories, reflection, cognitive apprenticeship,
collaboration, and coaching. Stories are increasingly recognized as structures
which experts use to store and retrieve information and to convey information
to others. In service-learning, stories can be used in the preparation phase
to orient students to an activity. For example, stories from experts in the
area of service can provide students with a framework for conceptualizing the
service problem as well as potential solutions. Stories by people experiencing
a particular social problem may encourage students' empathy and willingness
to take the other's perspective. Additionally, students' reflections on their
service can take the form of stories.
Other components of situated learning include cognitive apprenticeship and coaching. The major tenet of the concept of cognitive apprenticeship is that individuals become "enculturated" in the use of different types of knowledge through an apprenticeship in a "community of practice." When applied to service-learning, the concept of cognitive apprenticeship suggests that students should be accepted as full participants in groups which perform particular service or civic activities and should assume progressively more responsibility for service tasks. The notion of coaching suggests that students should be assigned an expert guide during their service activity. The expert should model social and civic problem solving and allow students to take initiative, observing them and providing scaffolding when necessary.
Cognitive apprenticeship and the process of learning from coaching require that students have collaborative skills. Several approaches exist for teaching collaboration including shared problem solving, assignment of different roles, and group evaluation of problem solving strategies (Brown et al., 1989). Many authors have noted the inherently collaborative nature of service-learning. However, the potential of service-learning as an method for teaching collaboration can be strengthened. For example, discussions can highlight group ownership for a problem and students' membership in the larger community of practice taking action to address a problem.
Giving students a choice of service projects can also enhance their sense of ownership. Teachers can assign individuals or groups of students to different roles in a service project, for example to investigating different elements of a social problem or to different service tasks. Finally, students can be asked not only to reflect on their personal responses to their service experience, but to assess their group's problem solving efforts.
With its beginnings rooted in the Progressive Education movement of the 1920s, followed by its inclusion in school-based community service and civics education, service-learning has shown its great potential for helping students develop healthy commitments toward the public good.