Danvers Public Schools Community Service-Learning Home | Partners | Projects | Newsletters | Resources | Contact Us

Video
The video entitled "Bring Learning to Life" provides a good overview of CSL.

Three Key Terms
Community-Based Learning
Community Service
Community Service-Learning (CSL)

Community-Based Learning
Definition: "An approach that enhances the curriculum by using community members and places as resources for learning." Source: KIDS as Planners: A Guide to Strengthening Students, Schools and Communities Through Service-Learning.
Example: Students read The Cruicible and take a field trip to the Salem Witch Museum.

Community Service
Definition: "An activity that engages people in addressing needs of their schools and communities." Source: KIDS as Planners: A Guide to Strengthening Students, Schools and Communities Through Service-Learning.
Example: Students participate in a canned food drive to benefit a local food pantry.

Community Service-Learning
Definition: "A method of teaching and learning that challenges students to identify, research, propose and implement solutions to real needs in their school or community as part of their curriculum. Source: KIDS as Planners: A Guide to Strengthening Students, Schools and Communities Through Service-Learning.
Example: Students learn about the root causes of poverty that contribute to hunger by reading articles and watching a documentary. They study nutritional needs and create a cookbook which they sell to raise funds for the local food pantry. They also create a presentation to teach elementary school students about hunger.

Community Service-Learning is NOT Community Service. What is the difference?
Community service is volunteer action taken to meet the needs of others and better the community as a whole. Service-learning is integrated into and enhances the academic curriculum of students engaged in service, or the educational components of the community service program in which the participants are enrolled. Service-learning provides structured time for thoughtful planning of the service project and guided reflection by participants on the service experience. Overall, the most important feature of effective service-learning programs is that both learning and service are emphasized. Source: Learn and Serve America's National Service-Learning Clearinghouse www.servicelearning.org.

High-quality service-learning should have the following four stages:
1) Preparation
2) Action
3) Reflection
4) Demonstration

For example, taking up a food collection or raising money for a donation to a food pantry is community service.
However, after determining the food pantry needs additional resources, then studying poverty, nutrition and economics while brainstorming how to make a positive impact on the local food pantry, organizing to gather recipes for a cookbook, typing the recipes, desktop publishing the cookbook, having a dance to raise funds for the printing of the cookbook, marketing the cookbook, donating the proceeds to the food pantry while journaling about the entire process is Community Service Learning.

Where can I find community service-learning in school?
Community service-learning can take place in any grade K-12. Community service-learning is embedded within the curriculum.

Who are the community partners involved in service-learning?
"Service-learning partners can include elementary schools, secondary schools, institutions of higher education, community service programs, government agencies, non-profit organizations, faith-based organizations, and tribal nations."
Source: Learn and Serve America's National Service-Learning Clearinghouse
www.servicelearning.org
DHS Partners

What is Learn and Serve America?
"Learn and Serve America is a national service grant program that supports service-learning across the country by providing funding to schools, colleges, and nonprofit groups that engage students in community service linked to academic achievement and the development of civic skills. Learn and Serve America, a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service and USA Freedom Corps, was established in 1990 and celebrates its 15th Anniversary in 2005. Learn and Serve America has contributed more than $429 million to the service-learning efforts of schools, colleges, and universities nationwide since 1994. Annually, over 1 million students participate in projects supported by Learn and Serve America."
Source: Corporation for National and Community Service

Who do I contact for more information?
Learn and Serve America: www.learnandserve.gov
Community Service-Learning website: www.doe.mass.edu/csl
Massachusetts Service Alliance website: www.mass-service.org