Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning
Fall 1997, pp. 122-129
Service-Learning and Leadership Development:
Posing Questions Not Answers
Jennifer Althaus
Benedictine University
This article describes a theory and practice for using service-learning as aframework for teaching leadership development. The philosophical premises for merging the two fields of service-learning and leadership is informed by the work of Freire, Horton, and Dewey, as well as the best practices of experiential education and organizational behavior Out of these philosophies is drawn a curriculum for introducing students to non-traditional leadership styles, including those that are not based on powe;r authority, and hierarchy.
Introduction
Can leadership be learned? If not, then we must
rely on those individuals born with the gift of leadership to run our countries, companies, and communities. However, if we answer in the affirmative,
then "leadership must be learned and can be
learned" (Drucker, 1996, p. 2). This article explains
the theoretical premises of service-learning as a
pedagogy for leadership development. It also
explores the structure and detail of an active, nonhierarchical, and participatory course that effectively synthesizes service-learning and leadership.
Designing the curriculum for this course raised
some initial questions. Where and how do people
learn to lead? How do they begin to understand
what leadership is and what it should be? How do
they practice leadership in an informed way before
achieving positions of power? How do they differentiate between good and bad leadership?
Leadership development is rarely a deliberate
process and is not often learned as a subject in
itself. In general, it is treated as a trickle-down
effect of American educational systems, a skill to
be acquired and absorbed along the way, not as a
valuable tool to be practiced, critiqued, and honed.
According to A Social Change Model of Leadership Development (Higher Education Research
Institute, 1996), "service is a powerful vehicle for
developing students' leadership skills" (p. 10).
Because little has been written about the purposeful integration of leadership and service-learning,
this article will describe the goals and outcomes of
the curriculum, as well as areas of exploration for
future integration of service-learning and leadership.
Rationale
Students form their ideas about leadership from
a variety of sources, including their parents,
instructors, supervisors, the media, politicians, and
the structure of the educational system. By the time
individuals reach college, what they know about
leadership has been consolidated from a great deal
of data and experiences. This way of learning usually results in a perpetuation of the traditional
authoritarian leadership style which prevails in our
culture and which is oftentimes counterproductive.
College students' mental models about leadership
are generally hierarchical, viewing power and
authority as synonymous with leadership.
Professors, doctors, and politicians are the students' models for leaders. They are rarely exposed
to alternatives to leadership styles and are rarely
encouraged to consider leadership that is based on
something other than authority and power.
A number of service-learning and national service programs have been designed to enhance citizenship, community awareness, and the selfesteem of young people. It is unusual for leadership
development to be the deliberate goal of a program,
and it is even more rare that there would be a focus
on non-traditional leadership styles. It is the thesis
of this article, and the premise for the course of
study described herein, that service-learning can be
an effective vehicle for leadership development.
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