Service-Learning in Teacher Education
formed citizens. Strike (1990) notes that the ethical obligations of teaching are grounded in the
needs of a liberal democratic society for a citizenry with a capacity for self-governance, the
ability and commitment to work within democratic institutions, and the opportunity to implement its own conception of what comprises "the
good life." The results of numerous studies point
to the effectiveness of service-learning as a curricular technique for promoting gains in citizenship skills, including open-mindedness and tolerance, political efficacy, and social and personal
responsibility (Conrad & Hedin, 1982; Hamilton
& Fenzel, 1988; Luchs, 1981; Wilson, 1974).
In addition to the promise it offers for overcoming the limitations of traditional teacher education programs and its consistency with the goals
of education reform, there is a third rationale for
including service-learning within the teacher
preparation curriculum. It arises from the altered
responsibilities of educators brought about by the
profound changes which have occurred in the
demographic and social context of schooling.
For example, the California Commission for Reform of Intermediate and Secondary Education
(1975) has reported the "unstable social climate"
(p. xii) in which many young people are confronted with "complicated social problems and
turmoil which earlier generations never encountered" ( p. xi ).
The problems impinging on young people include, for example, a high divorce rate, substance
abuse problems, teen pregnancy, a dramatic increase in participation in and victimization by
violent crime, and declining academic achievement (Youth Indicators: Trends in the WellBeing of American Youth, 1993). In addition to
these shifts in the family and community contexts
for development, changes have also occurred in
the demographic context of schooling. For example, the proportion of citizens aged 65 and
older is increasing. Future requirements of this
group and of the larger society will need to be met
by a dwindling work force, of which poor, minority, and linguistically diverse young people will
comprise an ever greater proportion. Furthermore, work opportunities for this future labor
force are increasingly likely to be located in
information and technology-based fields.
In the 1980's, the schools attempted to address
these social and demographic changes by infusing increased rigor into traditional curricular or
instructional efforts, e.g. in the form of direct
instruction, a longer school day, more frequent
student assessment, etc. However, empirical evidence suggests that these reforms comprised of
"more of the same" (Lieberman, 1992, p. 4) have
had limited effectiveness. There is growing awareness that schools cannot address children's cognitive needs in isolation from the difficult circumstances of many of their lives. Researchers suggest that in the 90's, schools and communities
will need to form alliances to address a broad
spectrum of children's needs. In addition, if they
are to meet the goal of equality of education
opportunity, educators will need to develop curricula and pedagogical approaches which maximize the likelihood of success for all students. As
Newmann (1993) points out, instructional approaches which have been relatively effective for
English-speaking, middle class youngsters are
unlikely to succeed with youngsters who are
linguistically different, or burdened by poverty or
emotional turmoil. These youngsters, because of
their language backgrounds or limited training in
the metacognitive and cognitive skills required in
school, may experience barriers to involvement
in academic tasks. In addition, they may perceive
the "middle class," future-oriented agenda of the
school as irrelevant to their goals. Educators
argue that to meet the needs of these students,
schools will need to become more "learner-centered" (Darling-Hammond & Snyder, 1992, p.
11). One implication of a learner-centered program is that educators' first priority must be "the
welfare of the client" (Darling-Hammond &
Snyder, p. 19). Effective teachers in learnercentered schools will be those who do not merely
transmit the curriculum, but whose awareness of
students' needs allows them to more effectively
engage students in the learning process
(Lieberman, 1992).
The notion that schooling and teaching must be
grounded in the needs of students is consistent
with recent discussions on the role of ethics in
teacher preparation programs, particularly
Noddings' care theory (1988, 1993). Care theory
is distinct from traditional Western moral orientations, such as Kantian ethics, in which the
primary value is duty, and moral behavior is
viewed as the application of principles regardless
of affective or relational context. In contrast, the
tenets of care theory are inextricably bound up
with significant emotional relationships, such as
attachment relationships. In care theory, the
primary value is the "love and natural inclination" (Noddings, 1988, p. 219) that flows out of a
caring relation. Duty is of secondary importance,
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