Through an analysis of a practice-oriented course on youth worker professional development consisting of 10 community youth workers and 11 traditional college students, this paper suggests the need to construct the classroom as a "borderland." Course structure, class composition, pedagogical strategies, and deliberate learning objectives disrupted…

This study considered the impact of the SERVE Program upon participating college students' belief in the American Dream. The SERVE Program is a community service learning program sponsored by the philosophy and theology departments at Ignatius University. Using a mixed methods approach, the authors found that participating students demonstrated…

A significant number of community service-learning projects in higher education involve the teaching or tutoring of immigrants in English. As in related service-learning scholarship, these projects are commonly informed by perspectives on cultural difference, social justice, and power relations in U.S. society. Yet while faculty pair their…

Responds to the argument that service-learning must be supported by a theory of knowledge--antifoundational pragmatism--holding that this characterization of the pragmatist model retains the dualism seen as a fault of traditional epistemology. Suggests a remedy, and then extends the original argument by setting more restrictive limits on the range…

Identifies five specific areas in which John Dewey's writings contribute to service-learning: linking education to experience; democratic community; social service; reflective inquiry; and education for social transformation. Argues that these contributions form the basis of a cultural and political critique and reconceptualized pedagogy aimed at…

Service-learning has drawn largely on a few major theorists for theoretical support. Additional theoretical perspectives drawn from cognitive psychology and social theory can also contribute, including constructs of concept formation, selective perception, categorization, critical reflection, and mediated learning. Each of these helps to explain…

A study at the State University of New York's College at Cortland compared outcomes of an introductory college sociology course for students taught traditionally and those taught with a service-learning component. Students in the service-learning course showed greater improvements in social responsibility and personal efficacy and greater ability…

Impact of introducing service-learning in a Providence College (Rhode Island) public policy course was measured in terms of student attitude and value change and student learning. Results indicate no significant impact on student attitudes, despite perceptions of both instructor and students that instructional quality was enhanced. Possible…

Calls for greater attention to pedagogical challenges and opportunities to integrate service-learning and academic study, particularly in maintaining both content coverage and empowerment as objectives. Draws on transcripts of class discussions and student writing in a community service learning course focusing on literacy to trace students'…

Describes creation and implementation of a college service-learning course on "Nonviolence, Peace and Community" in response to local social conflict. The facilitators attempted to create the course from the community, using community participation, collaborative self-directed learning, a Socratic approach to group discussion, and an open planning…

Reports on a service-learning seminar at Stanford University (California) for nine faculty and three administrators designed to stimulate faculty interest in connecting student public service to academic study and provide knowledge and resources for course design. Data are drawn from participants' seminar learning plans, assessments, and follow-up…

Reports on a survey questionnaire of 130 Michigan college faculty who incorporate service-learning into academic courses, focusing on faculty motivation, satisfaction, and the intersection of the two. Results indicate significant differences concerning faculty motivation for using service learning, but also commonalities with other findings…

University students in two advanced introductory psychology courses were offered simultaneous enrollment in a community service-learning course. Students selecting the option did not differ from nonparticipants demographically, or in self-reporting personal development gains or final grades, but did report enhanced ability to apply concepts…

Describes two participatory action research projects completed by undergraduate students for community-based organizations in New York City (New York) that dramatically affected municipal economic development and affordable housing policies in two low-income minority communities. Argues that such projects are valuable in helping students gain…

Describes a community service-learning seminar for college freshmen, focusing on education for empowerment. Notes an inherent dichotomy: students need to learn specific, empowering ways to interact with community members even while confronting uncomfortable issues but remain empowered themselves by how the service-learning course is designed and…