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ERIC Number: EJ1167124
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1076-0180
EISSN: N/A
Examining the Relationship between Service-Learning Participation and the Educational Success of Underrepresented Students
Song, Wei; Furco, Andrew; Lopez, Isabel; Maruyama, Geoffrey
Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, v24 n1 p23-37 Fall 2017
Underrepresented students have been identified as being less likely to attain a college degree than their majority counterparts. Service-learning (SL) offers students an opportunity to engage in community work and improve skills that might contribute to their educational success in college. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of SL courses on students' academic outcomes (fourth-year cumulative GPA) and persistence (fourth-year cumulative units earned, retention, and graduation) at a large Midwestern university, with a focus examining service-learning's impact on underrepresented students. Results showed that SL participation was positively related to underrepresented students' cumulative GPA, retention, and graduation, but was not related to units earned. The relationship between SL and academic outcomes, however, were not consistent across the colleges included in the study. In some colleges, SL had negative relationships with underrepresented students' academic outcomes and persistence. The differential findings across the colleges suggest that university-wide studies of SL should take into account particular practices within SL courses that promote and limit underrepresented students' capacity to optimize educational outcomes.
Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, University of Michigan. 1024 Hill Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-3310. Tel: 734-647-7402; Fax: 734-647-7464; Web site: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/mjcsl
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Pell Grant Program
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A