“In addition to helping those they serve, such service learning activities seek to promote students' self-esteem, to develop higher-order thinking skills, to make use of multiple abilities, and to provide authentic learning experiences—all goals of current curriculum reform efforts.”
I would have to agree with the quote above. I think that service learning can really help students. I know in my high school they did service learning projects and that would help particularly seniors get first hand experiences of careers they would might want to do. Also i think that if they student picks what organization to go to it will make the whole experience better. Anytime a person it interested in something it will make them want to keep going and learning more
"The distance between the one caring and the one cared for diminishes. Unfortunately, in many service activities, students view those they serve as clients rather than as a resource"
I agree with this quote as well. I think that is is great if the person who is caring for the people actually goes and interacts with them. When you start to interact with the people you are helping it helps you build strong relationships with them. Also, you can learn from the people and they can learn form you. By caring and interacting with people you are better able to understand them and they are better able to understand you.
I agree with both of these quotes; these projects help the person as well as yourself. They help you appreciate your life more as well as showing you to be more respective. In the first paragraph you mention how in high school the projects you did helped people choose what career they wanted to pursue and I agree because we also did that in my high school. In my high school I worked with special needs children with dance, basketball, and academics. This opened my eyes to see that I wanted to teach special education.
ReplyDeleteI think that when it comes to service learning it can go two ways. Either a volunteer is indifferent and just does it like it is a job. Putting in the effort to be able to complete the task but not going any further. I have seen people who volunteer but are very self enclosed. They don’t reveal much about themselves and don’t open up to others. On the other hand a volunteer can become deeply involved. Soon they find themselves changing and they see the change in others that they are helping. They become invested in the benefits of others. What we think is the right way depends on the person.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your quote one and your thoughts about it. Service learning is great and students can get a lot out of it. My senior year my school offered the same thing. I interned in a middle school classroom every other did. I learned a lot about the teaching field. I got a lot out of it both educationally and mentally, after working with both the teacher AND the students.
ReplyDeleteAs I said on Alexa's blog, I think that service learning is great for individuals. I know that I completed service learning throughout high school even though it was not mandatory. I think that I got a lot of experience interacting with so many different types of people through it and it is something I will never regret doing. It was an hour a week and I think it should actually be required because it was just an overall great experience.
ReplyDelete