Service Learning (SL) is an innovation in education. SL is designed as a pedagogy to enhance student learning through active engagement and participation in authentic and meaningful contexts during planned service experiences in students' community. The authentic activities and contexts for an SL project must directly relate to course objectives and contents. When engaging in planned and service-oriented activities, students connect course assignments with real life applications by recording a series of personal journals, quickwrites, and/or written reports.
Service Learning projects conducted by Teaching Credential Candidates at San Jose State University revealed how such experiences contributed to their personal and professional growth when they were able to link the course contents and instructional objectives with their civic engagement as a member of the community.

Selected Community Agencies

1. Bill Wilson Center
2. Camp Costanoan
3. Child Advocates
 4. Children's Defense Fund
5. Eastfield Ming Quong (EMQ)
Children & Family Services
6. Friends of Children with Special Needs
7. Parents Helping Parents
8. Special Olympics
9. TransAccess
10. Volunteer Center of Silicon Valley
11. Strong Neighborhood Initiative
12. Sunday Friends

SERVICE LEARNING PLANS FOR CHALLENGED STUDENTS

Resources provided by the West Virginia Department of Education

OTHER RESOURCES

:: SJSU - Center for
Service Learning

:: CSU Community Service Learning

:: Humboldt State University

::California Department
 of Education

:: National Commission on Service-Learning
Final Report: Learning in Deed: The Power of Service-Learning for American Schools

:: National Service Learning Clearinghouse

Acknowledgement:
Creation of this web site was funded by the Center for Service Learning at San Jose State University and designed by May-hwa Ho, Instructional Designer, in Fall, 2002.