Heads, Hearts, and Hands: The Research on K-12 Service-Learning

In this article, the research on service-learning that has been completed in the past few years is summarized. It shows how educators, researchers, and the general public have begun to define the "it," that is, the essence of service-learning. It addresses how the research has begun to converge on the effects that service-learning appears to have on students in three domains: cognitive ("heads"), affective ("hearts"), and behavioral ("hands"), along with effects on schools and communities. Finally, the article looks at what the research has begun to discover on the aspects of quality programming. That is, what do we want to do within the experience of service-learning that helps us to maximize outcomes? More plainly, how to make it work best? The paper culminates in a discussion about the conditions under which different "quality indicators" matter. Includes a consideration of the impact of service-learning on teachers.