 |
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
Rationale for Service Learning
|
In 1961, President John F. Kennedy challenged, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” (Grice & Skinner, 2002, p. 352). In 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr., proclaimed, “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve” (p. 359). More recently, after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on America, President George W. Bush called on Americans to “make a difference” by dedicating two years, or a total of 4,000 hours, to community service (Willey, SW2). Service to one’s community and nation is a high calling, one that monumental education figure, John Dewey, envisioned as the pragmatic and ultimate goal of public education (Fogarty, 1997).
SL has been termed an “ ‘education common’—a pedagogical meeting place whose origins and principles are shared by a wide range of American and international cultural communities” (Kielsmeier, 2000, p. 652). This paper focuses on two aspects of the pedagogy of Service Learning (SL): its evolution, and its benefits. SL has developed over the past century in its motivations and practices from involvement in volunteerism to active civic engagement. Its benefits to both learners and community are vast and significant, such that many educators and government leaders believe it should be a required component in the educational career of all students (2000).
From the preamble to the Wingspread Report, Principles of Good Practice for Combining Service and Learning:
We are a nation founded upon active citizenship and participation in community life. We have always believed that individuals can and should serve…Service, combined with learning, adds value to each and transforms both. Those who serve and those who are served are thus able to develop the informed judgment, imagination, and skills that lead to a greater capacity to contribute to the common good. (Mann & Patrick, 2000, p. 45)
| |
|
|
|
