Rules of Engagement: A Service Learning Pedagogy for Pre-service Teacher Education

Student engagement in higher education has generated considerable attention. Service learning pedagogy has emerged as a practice which has considerable potential to support student engagement. Pre-service teacher education candidates at an urban HBCU evaluating their service learning methods courses demonstrated: 1) an understanding of pedagogical discrimination and preference; 2) an understanding of course content and application skills; 3) increased and/or strengthened leadership skills and 4) an increased propensity for civic engagement. Initial research results suggest that the pedagogical shift to service-learning can be a worthwhile and powerful learning experience which supports student engagement.