Some Worked Better Than Others: Experience with a Variety of Service-Learning Projects

For a number of years, the authors have incorporated service-learning into their computer science undergraduate curriculum through software engineering course projects. Although students benefit from participation, project outcomes have been mixed. The number of causes of project failure is relatively small but difficult to recognize and predict at project start. Here the authors present and characterize a number of specific projects, relate project characteristics to subsequent outcomes, and draw conclusions.