Service-Learning and the Hungry and Homeless
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7721/chilyoutenvi.26.1.0164Keywords:
service-learning, environmental education, urban adolescents, adolescent engagement, homeless and hungry, ethic of careAbstract
For over 20 years, Sunnyside Environmental School in Portland, Oregon has adopted service-learning as an instructional approach to engage young people with local communities. This report explores the voices of sixth through eighth graders illustrated by their Reflection Journals as they interacted with hungry and homeless individuals in the community. The human-scale connections resulted in tangible sensibilities of care evident in students’ reflections: dispelling stereotypes as students became open-minded, making a noticeable difference however small,developing compassion through new understandings,and taking action to correct social injustices in the communities where they live.