Service-Learning

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What is Service-Learning and how is it different than Volunteerism?

"Volunteerism is the engagement of students in activities where the primary emphasis is on the service being provided and the primary intended beneficiary is clearly the service recipient "

"Service-learning programs are distinguished from other approaches to experiential education by their intention to equally benefit the provider and the recipient of the service as well as to ensure equal focus on both the service being provided and the learning that is occurring."

Furco, A. (1996). Service-learning: A balanced approach to experiential education. Expanding Boundaries: Serving and Learning. Washington DC: Corporation for National Service.

Distinctions Among Service Programs - The Experiential Education Continuum:

Service programs can be placed along a continuum that identifies both the primary beneficiary of the service and also the primary focus of the service. As the graphic below indicates, pure volunteerism primarily benefits the service recipient and the primary focus is on the service being done. Towards the other end of the spectrum, most internships (not to be confused with service-internships) represent experiential learning opportunities where the primary beneficiary is the service provider (student) and the main focus of the experience is not the service being done but the learning that occurs.

Service-learning represents a symbiotic form of experiential education that, if done correctly, creates the opportunity for both the service provider and the service recipient to benefit equally from the experience. Likewise, the primary focus of service-learning is that both the service being done and the learning that occurs are of equal importance and both must occur in order to maximize the benefits of the service experience for both parties.

Service Programs Spectrum

Types of Service-Learning:

Click on the type of service learning you would like to explore. Each item includes a detailed description, reasons why students and organizations can both benefit from engaging in that type of service learning, and suggestions for ways organizations could offer these types of high-impact experiential learning opportunities for college students.

*Click on the "Return to Service-Learning" link on each page to return to this diagram.