Writing the Ties that Bind: Service-Learning in the Writing Classroom
Appendix
Selected Annotated Bibliography
Martha Merrill
Michigan State University
Civic Education and Civic Literacy
Barber, B. (1992). An aristocracy of everyone: The
politics of education and the future of America.
New York: Ballantine.
The title ofthis book reflects Barber's assertion
that through effective civic education, all members of society can learn to take part in the
democratic process of decision making and thus
join the "aristocracy" or ruling class. The first
three chapters discuss the potential for a multiple
view of our historical canons, arguing for a balance between a unified history with the potential
to exclude and a denial of any communal history.
The next two chapters address the excesses of
both postmodernism and conservatism. In the
last two chapters, Barber argues for a civic mission for the university and demonstrates how
community service can be a means of teaching
liberatory participation in a democracy.
Fransoza, S. D., (Ed.) (1988). Civic education: Its
limits and conditions: Nine essays. Ann Arbor, MI:
Prakken Publishers.
The essays in this text, divided into three sections, reflect the debate over the role of civic
education. The first section deals with defining
the philosophy of democracy and citizenship,
including discussions of civic literacy, social
forces countering democratic education, and conflicting definitions of civic education. Section
two covers the difficulties of institutionalizing
civic education in a pluralist society, discussing
meritocracy, gender bias, and the potential of
African-American social theories as models. The
third section looks to the current social climate
and the possibilities of global citizenship as they
affect civic education.
Giles, D. E. and Eyler, J. (1994). The theoretical roots
of service-learning in John Dewey: Toward a theory
of service-learning. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 1(1), 77-85.
The authors note the absence of solid and
agreed-upon theoretical underpinnings for service-learning and argue for the development of
such a shared understanding. They review
Dewey's theories of experiential learning and of
citizenship education in a democracy, which they
feel are central to the theoretical enterprise of
service-learning. A series of questions to guide
further development of service-learning as a field
of study are also included.
Morse, S. W. (1993). The practice of citizenship:
Learn by doing. The Social Studies, 84, 164.
The author focuses on the need for active
participation as the foundation for citizenship
education, based on a model of participatory
democracy. She suggests a combination of discussion of civic issues within the classroom and
service in the community. The classroom is a
public space, and as such can be developed into a
civic community. Service experiences should be
contextualized by relevant reading, clearly defined in terms of responsibility, and structured to
allow reflection on action.
Schultz, S. K. (1991). Whither civic education: Classics or community service? Education Digest, 56,
56-60.
Schultz briefly summarizes the educational
and social problems that civic education hopes to
address. Two approaches to civic education are
then described, the first being the study of classical, historical texts and the second the experiential approach. He then elaborates on problems
with each approach if it is followed exclusively,
arguing that what is needed is a blend of these two
very different traditions. He concludes that the
university must work to establish community
between disciplines, between educators holding
one or the other of the views he describes, and
between educators and the larger community.
Seigel, S. and Rockwood, V. (1993). Democratic
education, student empowerment, and community
service: Theory and practice. Equity and Excellence in Education, 26, 65-70.
The authors define democratic education and
argue for a broader definition of democracy,
going beyond voting to active participation. They
83
