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through these partnerships that community needs are identified and plans for meeting the
needs are formulated. Students utilize and expand on knowledge they have gained in the
classroom and apply the knowledge to help solve community issues and/or provide service
to a community. (Nitschke-Shaw et al., 1997 , p. 8)
Service learning combines rigorous academic learning with authentic commu-
nity service. Jagla, Erickson and Tinkler ( 2013 ) suggest that ‘service learning takes
students [preservice teachers] out of the four walls of the classroom and into the
community seeking to understand the world as it is – messy, complicated and real’
(p. xv). Pessate-Schubert, Thomas, and Lehman ( 2006 ) highlight the relevance of
service learning in higher education particularly as a ‘means of delivering course
content while addressing social justice issues pertinent to today’s social and educa-
tional climate’ (p. 68). Abel ( 2004 ) states that service learning is both external and
interpersonal and that it ‘enhances a student’s educational experience, sustains dem-
ocratic culture, strengthens democratic institutions and advances social justice’
(p. 46). In contrast, it has been noted that service learning ‘... is limited to internal
philanthropic justifications that do not seek to transform societal or educational
institutions’ (Lukenchuk, Jagla, & Price, 2013 , p. 56).
Research into service learning for preservice teachers has confirmed that preser-
vice teachers needed to have a clear understanding of the project aim. It is essential
that effective communication is maintained between all stakeholders and that clear
explicit goals and rationale drive the experience. Collaborative planning based on
these clearly defined foci should support project implementation and completion
(Bates & Lin, 2015 ; Jagla et al., 2013 ; Nitschke-Shaw et al., 1997 ; Pessate-Schubert
et al., 2006 ). In their research on community action with teacher preparation, Pessate
Schubert et al. discussed both the importance of facilitating preservice teachers’
involvement in service learning and its impact on schools and their students:
Preservice teachers are paired with students in K-12 settings to provide intensive remedia-
tion and enrichment through which both benefit: the preservice teacher learns his/her craft,
and the student gains additional support, enhancing his/her academic skills. In addition to
providing preservice teachers with a real-world vehicle for learning instructional practice,
service learning has also been found to be an effective tool for helping them become aware
of and active in social justice issues. (p. 2).
Research also shows numerous personal development impacts of service learn-
ing opportunities in teacher preparation courses for preservice teachers. These
impacts include increases in self-confidence, self-esteem, leadership skills and per-
sonal decision-making skills (Aquila & Dodd, 2003 ; McMurtrie, Coleman, Ruppert,
& Senn, 2014 ), career benefits and spiritual growth (Eyler & Giles Jr, 2002 ), and
increased feelings of social and civic responsibility and heightened volunteerism
(Carrington & Saggers, 2008 ; Scales, Blyth, Berkas, & Kielsmeier, 2000 ).
Interpersonally, teachers and administrators note an improvement in preservice
teachers’ abilities to work with others and in particular consider diversity and inclu-
sion in classrooms (Carrington, Mercer, Iyer, & Selva, 2015 ; Eyler & Giles Jr,
2002 ). Finally, service learning opportunities such as those described in this chapter
provide preservice teachers ‘access to expanded arenas of professional discourse
B. Eckersley et al.