Positive Benefits Of Service Learning

Academics is a large part of what determines the future of the typical college student. With an education and a degree, it is assumed that the individual will be an active member in a work space, a family, and the various forms of community that will be encountered after graduation. However, for an individual to fully participate and utilize their skills to the best of their ability, they will need to practice participating and helping within a community. This is what a service learning project is. This project will integrate the student's into a community, whether it be a town, church, school, and any other community. The student's will be given multiple opportunities that allow them to enrich the lives of the other members of this community.

It is also a “boundary spanning” activity in that it requires active involvement from people both within and outside of the classroom context, often resulting in participant contributors who represent a variety of generations, ethnicities, social groups, and experience levels (Billig and Furco, 2002, p.vii). Service-learning is designed to reduce the boundaries between an institutional campus environment and the community around it. It is designed to connect learning to real experience through service and reflection (Ball and Schilling, 2006; Becker, 2000). As a baseline to facilitate this development, service-learning is distinct from other types of community service and civic engagement experiences in that the service-learning experience must not only have a service and reflective component but also be clearly tied to the curriculum through learning objectives and theoretical underpinnings (Bloomquist, 2015; Pritchard, 2001). As Barbara Holland, former Director of the U.S. National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, shared, “Service-learning is all in the hyphen. It is the enrichment of specific learning goals through structured community service opportunities that respond to community-identified needs and opportunities.” (Kenworthy-U’Ren, Taylor, and Petri, 2006: 121).

Encouraging students to engage in meaningful, sustained community service and get involved in causes that speak to

The mission for adolescent and adult community service is to develop compassion and the spirit of service and charity in elementary, middle and high school. With that said, community service workers provide young people and adults with hands-on volunteer opportunities to help others in their local and global communities. For instance by being a part of volunteer community service work it can solve a few problems such as: health care, child care, literacy training, education (including tutorial services), welfare, social services, transportation, housing and neighborhood improvement, public safety, crime

As young adults, our characters are still being molded and we believe to have an efficient environment each individual should strive to be modified to his or her full potential. An aspect of community service promotes finding individuality and purpose in life. Actually connecting with hundreds who have

“Service-learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities” (Learn and Serve America National Service-Learning Clearinghouse). This assignment gave students the opportunity to go outside of their comfort zone, which is typically the classroom and see what the “real world” is like. As Gandhi would say “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others” (Gandhi). I believe that this project really allowed us to appreciate what we have because many people are not as fortunate. During this service learning project I had certain expectations going into the project, but in the end, my results were not exactly as I expected.

Service learning projects can be life changing for students. They learn empathy for others, and may even get the real life experience they need which will inspire them to find a career. Through helping others students may find that they want to go into the human services field or even go more global by joining the Peace

According to Felten and Clayton in the article Service Learning, they discuss with us how beneficial service learning is for students, staff, and community members.The effectiveness in Service learning includes the general community coming together to help serve a greater purpose. In regards to college, service learning serves as and experience to gain partnership and collaboration throughout the experience and community.For my service learning narrative, i chose to volunteer again with Ignite Church at James Monroe Elementary. From 2-4 we worked with a group of 4th graders on different activities that consisted of critical thinking, imagination, and problem-solving. The purpose of this afternoon was to connect with at least one of the students

Service learning is important because it teaches people the value of volunteering, while helping the community grow as one. It makes young kids idol adults how are not narcissistic but rather modest. In the article, “Teaching and Learning Operant Principles in Animal Shelters: Perspectives from Faculty, Students, and Shelter Staff”, students were able to relate their wisdom on service learning by volunteering in the animal shelter. The more the students volunteered, the more knowledge they were able to present about psychological terms. This means that if students are able to relate their education to the real world, their success in school would drastically increase. Volunteering benefits the society by shaping people to be more confident

In her article entitled " Using service learning to teach classic learning theories ", Sheafer (2014) tells us about a research project of a psychology course at the LeTourneau University which required 19 enrolled students to participate in service learning assignment. Service learning is an educational approach that contributes to the learning of students through involving them in providing an organized voluntary services to the community. The project aims at letting students see empirically verified service learning concepts and related learning theories in actions and reflect on their experience with applying them to real life situations. The project included a three-hour community service followed by a survey of services provided as well

Discussing about volunteering to teenagers should be the first step for a better life, since teenagers are the future of tomorrow and they will leave a mark from yesterday. Volunteering has been such an important matter, that schools in many countries around the world established that 12th grade students will need certain hours of community service in order to graduate. But the frequent answers all the schools are getting are “Why do I need to volunteer? I have better things to do!” What people are forgetting is that each one of them is part of a community, a community that is not perfect and that the government sometimes forgets about their problems or needs, because obviously the government needs to take care of other things that require more attention. People are not only helping others, they are also helping themselves (Volunteering).

In high school, students are motivated to make an effort mile to do service learning, but it those who truly go above and beyond to serve their community and complete service learning that can fully comprehend the influence in can have on many aspects of life.

Service learning is defined as the student’s involvement in community service activities and applies the experiment to personal, professional, and academic development. The main objectives of service learning are related to community needs that planned in support with community partners and service recipients. Service-learning engages students in a three-part process: learning process according to classroom context, services activity according to classroom context, and reflection relate to service experience to specific learning goals. Service learning allows students to develop skills of team working, communication, and responsibility.

It’s been proven that teenagers (ages 13-20 years old) actually benefit from doing community service. The service benefits them personally, when applying to jobs and more importantly college. I did notice that having multiple accounts of community service did in fact help me when it came to applications. It has shown that I have developed a sense of responsibility and social connections throughout my community. By volunteering it has also helped me condense my search for a career, by showing me what they do day to day.

Service learning has gave me the new opportunity experience helping others and including myself. I enjoy volunteering work because It’s a way of giving back to the community, but also for example, I’ve become confident in public speaking. In addition, volunteer work is great rewarding experience, and it 's also help me develop social skills, by supporting others. The contribute can make a positive impact in many ways, Barack Obama said, “ the best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the work with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.” There are element that could promise will succeed in life, however, I believe