What is service learning?

Service-learning is a hands-on teaching tool, a method of experiential education, which attempts to strengthen ties between theory and practice by placing students into service in the community. Students actively participate in thoughtfully organized service experiences that allow them to apply the skills and knowledge they are acquiring to meet real community needs. The service experience is integrated into the academic curriculum of the course, with students using structured time and assignments to think, talk, and write about how their service activities relate to their studies. By extending the classroom into the community, both students and community members can examine the relevance of higher education to public life and work to address matters of mutual concern. In addition to the resulting benefits to the community, recent studies have suggested that enhanced academic performance, better student retention, and more active citizenship are among the benefits of service-learning to students.

To find out more about service-learning, please contact your College's Academic Advising Center.