Service-Learning

Connecting schools to community service is known as service-learning. Service-learning, described in this entry, is a method by which students learn and develop through curriculum integration and active participation in thoughtfully organized service experiences that address actual needs in the community. Providing structured time for students to think, talk, and write about their experiences during a service activity, service-learning provides students with opportunities to use their skills and knowledge in real-life situations in their own communities. These experiences enhance learning, especially for the gifted, by extending student learning into the community and helping to foster a sense of caring for others. Service-learning, tracing its roots to community service, has been shown to be an effective, differentiated methodology in the education of the gifted by encouraging ...