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QUOTES ABOUT SERVICE-LEARNINGMany of the following quotes are taken from the National Commission on Service-Learning's report, Learning In Deed: The Power of Service-Learning for American Schools.
"By its very definition, civic responsibility means taking
a healthy role in the life of one's community. That means that classroom
lessons should be complemented by work outside the classroom. Service-learning
does just that, tying community service to academic learning."
"Service-learning is a particularly fertile way of involving
young people in community service, because it ties helping others
to what they are learning in the classroom. It enables them to apply
academic disciplines to practical, everyday problems. In the process,
it provides a compelling answer to the adolescent's perennial question,
'Why do I need to learn this stuff?'"
"Students who participate in service-learning are likely to
continue to work all their lives in many different ways to improve
the world around them, with lasting benefits for our country and
our planet."
"I wish adults would understand that students have innovative, mind-boggling ideas, and that students can put those ideas into action. They can make the world a better place."
"A well-designed service-learning program not only provides
the opportunity to serve but also encourages students, through structured
reflection, to explore the meaning and moral implications of service.
Ultimately, schools with service-learning programs will strengthen
democracy and help students meet challenges and opportunities in
an interdependent, ever changing world."
"Be the change you want to see in this world."
"Service-learning is a key education reform strategy. Policy
makers need to move this tool to the top of their list of priorities."
"Service-learning is a great example of a learning strategy that creatively engages kids to learn in a meaningful way. By providing students a context for learning that is relevant and authentic, they learn more and learn more effectively."
"Service learning is a powerful tool for improving learning and strengthening the democratic fabric of our society. Service-learning can engage students in more experiential and meaningful learning."
"Service is the rent we pay for living."
"Everyone wants to do something that matters. When I was in high school, everyone talked about "the real world" and how we would get active in the "real world' after high school. Service-learning got us involved in the real world while we were still in high school. It let us do things that were important and let us see that what we were learning was important to solving real world problems."
"Anyone can serve, because we all have something to give"
"The highest standard of an American education is how students use their academic learning to contribute to the advancement of a democratic society of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" for all. Service-learning is exactly the vehicle for deepening academic learning of students as they make contributions to larger communities."
"Effective democracy depends upon people who are committed to doing what's best for the neighborhood as a whole. Citizen service is more important than self-service. Service-learning transcends political boundaries."
"Service-learning motivates students. Suddenly there's a connection between what the teacher is saying and the world outside the classroom."
"Student-driven and locally flavored service-learning is a coalescing force for the cornucopia of American ethnic, spiritual and cultural diversity."
"I don't know how anyone could ever say there is no academic benefit because there is so much writing, there is so much research, there is so much involvement and when kids are involved, they do more - they just perform better."
"We believe that partnerships among schools, businesses, and local leadership provide the greatest potential for strengthening communities. Service-learning can play an important and constructive role in these partnerships."
"Service-learning works -- it improves academic performance,
increases civic responsibility, and gets things done to help solve
community problems.
"Service-learning creates an environment that values young people. Our community sees our students in a new light, as givers, contributors, and citizens."
"Service-learning can be so much fun I forget I'm doing schoolwork
and
"Service-learning goes far beyond "volunteer service"
in its accessibility
"Service-learning is a powerful way to teach all [academic] disciplines…Community service through service-learning does not compete with academics. It validates it and solidifies it. When children are actively involved in their education and service, they will grow to be actively involved citizens."
"Service-learning may have a vital role to play in helping refocus our education priorities on what's truly important in education - Intellectual, Emotional, and Citizenship Intelligence -- the core competencies for work, citizenship, and continuous learning."
"Service-learning addresses three major issues in education: relevance of the curriculum, level of rigor, and relationships. It is about hope, inspiration, and learning for kids."
"The nature of the teacher-to-student relationship has changed. Kids and teachers have earned mutual respect. We actually had one of our students involved in the summer institute where she was teaching teachers about some reflection activities. The abilities of teachers to learn from a student, I think, was kind of neat. The fact that it's a two-way street between them both. That's a change."
"When education takes a hands-on approach to learning, the result is a more informed, more involved community of future leaders. Service-learning brings substance to our democracy and strengthens the thread that binds our diverse nation."
"The report of the National Commission on Service-Learning makes clear that engagement in service-learning both stand side by side with and reinforces academic learning in providing for the young a necessary apprenticeship in democracy. The report is a compendium of publications and ongoing initiatives nationwide as well as a call for further funding and innovative action on a wide range of fronts."
"Service-Learning helps translate book lessons into life lessons. It teaches our young people the importance of being engaged both academically as well as in the community. I commend the National Commission on Service-Learning for taking the lead role in promoting an educational experience that will serve our students and our nation well into the future."
"Well-designed service-learning programs that contribute to academic achievement can strengthen schools and communities and prepare young people for a lifetime of good citizenship."
"If we want our students to lead creative, productive, responsible lives, we must give them opportunities to learn in ways that have consequences for others, as well as for themselves. I know of no better way to invoke the many facets of cognitive development, moral reasoning and social responsibility than to engage students in service-learning opportunities. At its best, a service-learning experience can be transformative. Clearly learning within a context of responsibility is powerful."
"Service-learning resurrects idealism, compassion and altruism . . . we cannot survive as a nation unless we hold onto these qualities and teach them to our children."
"Service-learning engages students in education, and helps connect their personal lives and community responsibilities with their own academic achievement."
"The lessons that students learn through service to their communities are important 'life lessons' that will serve them well as they grow into adulthood. Molding a responsible citizenry requires a well-rounded education, and learning first-hand that the importance of service to others is a vital part of that education. Giving young people an opportunity to apply the knowledge, and practice the citizenship they acquire from the classroom makes their lives fuller and their communities better places to live."
"An education that teaches you to understand something about
the world has done only half of the assignment. The other half is
to teach you to do something about making the world a better place."
"Service-learning is highly compatible with and supportive
of rigorous
"The achievement problem we face in this country is due not to a drop in the intelligence or basic intellectual capacity of our children, but to a widespread decline in children's interest in education and their motivation to achieve in the classroom; it is a problem of attitude and effort, not ability."
"When you see kids who are disengaged, you know they are not learning. Seeing 100 percent engagement by all students in a service-learning activity really sparks curiosity, wonderment, and inquiry that we know provides for good learning."
"By pursuing the education of our children and young people in service and learning roles, we can increase the productivity of our schools and enhance the future of society."
"Service-learning is one resource to enhance student motivation. Kids are all too easily disconnected from school, but if they get connected in one place, it spreads over to other areas. Then parents start seeing new potential in their son or daughter. Teachers hear about a kid that they thought was a lost cause playing a leading role. It changes the lens and opens up possibilities."
"Teachers want their students to master knowledge and skills and also learn to get along with others, work together, and know they can make a difference in the world. Service-learning helps them do all those things at once, and can bring teachers new energy as they see their students succeed."
"Education is the future of this country. Service-learning helps students learn skills that they will use as learners, as workers, and as citizens."
"Our community believes that high stakes testing and student achievement are important. As a community, we also want to focus on leadership, character, and civic development. Service-learning lets us do it all."
"As we work to strengthen our schools and prepare our students to achieve in the coming century, I hope that we will continue to focus on their growth in the support and compassion they can demonstrate for others in their communities. I also hope that our schools will continue to be not just centers of academic learning, but also of positive personal growth and a training ground for good, caring citizens."
"Service-learning brings an awareness of life to the classroom. It gets students involved and that gets parents involved, because a child won't let a parent forget. And, it helps students learn that "I'm not by myself - -I have a responsibility to others." Service-learning is a real life experience in involvement that can begin even in pre-school and go on throughout the school years."
"Teachers sometimes struggle with the idea that service-learning is not something added on, but a way to deliver the curriculum, by engaging in service-learning, having kids perform community service and attaching the curriculum to it, they're going to deliver the curriculum in a more meaningful way. My experience is that once teachers try it, they love it!"
"The Cradleboard Teaching Project tries to engage youth energy as it really is, not only in Indian country but with all our participants. Service-learning can help all young people share their strengths, whatever they are, and make a real contribution to the community in which they live."
"Service-learning offers the opportunity for today's young people and tomorrow's leaders to learn, while addressing local needs. Hands-on experiences reinforce learning in the classroom, promoting civic responsibility and showing that citizens working together are a powerful source."
"Many well-run service-learning programs have demonstrated their double value -- for the education of the students and for the community. The time is ripe to spread this low-cost, high-impact idea to all schools and to all students."
"You will find meaning only by sharing in the responsibilities, the dangers, and the passions of your time."
"Civic behavior is the important issue for the country. Democracy requires its citizens to take responsibility and be involved in solving problems, not just during times of crisis, but all the time. Service-learning involves students in solving community problems, and at the same time, helps them learn and apply reading, writing, math, science, and social studies."
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has"
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