Principles for Success in Service Learning - the Three Cs

The authors' analysis leads them to propose the three Cs of service-learning that serve the big "C"-- community-- of the service-learning partnership, and lively will serve the students as well. The three Cs are: commitment, communication, and compatibility. Based on the organization representatives the authors spoke with, the success of a service-learning project depends in large part upon the level of commitment made by both the academic and community partners to developing and carrying out a successful project; the effectiveness of communication between the professor, student, and organization prior to and during the project; and the compatibility-- in terms of cultural understanding, knowledge, and professional skills-- of the service-learning program and the student with the community organization site. Not every success story the authors heard about shared all of these ingredients in equal measure, and their presence is not a guarantor of success. However, according to these organization representatives, they seem to be the most fundamental principles in governing service-learning success. Here they develop these three components as principles to guide service-learning. And in contrast to previous chapters, which focused mainly on what was not working, they now look at what community organization staff believe does work. (authors)