Dilemmas of Service-Learning Teachers

The goal of this qualitative case study was to investigate and portray teachers' beliefs about the dilemmas they faces as they implemented service-learning in their classrooms and how they managed those dilemmas within their specific school context. Through an analysis of interview, observation, and document data gathered over a five-month period, three broad dilemmas emerged: needs of the server vs. needs of the served, traditional vs. experiential education, and teacher control vs. student independence. Using the language of dilemmas which allows for a consideration of "the macro in the micro" it became clear that the dilemmas identified existed partially because of a persuasive teacher culture that hinders work among teachers at a school and between teachers and individuals at service sites.