Article

Assessing the Development of an Emerging Critical Consciousness through Service Learning

Authors: Douglas Barrera (University of California, Los Angeles) , Lauren N. Willner (University of California, Los Angeles) , Keali‘i Kukahiko (University of California, Los Angeles)

Abstract

Service learning has gained traction in higher education as an accepted pedagogical model, but practitioners question the types of learning outcomes that emerge from it. How does service learning contribute to student growth, particularly in the area of critical consciousness development? This study investigates how service-learning experiences impact the ways in which students think about issues of Inequality, Social Justice, and Power & Privilege. Qualitative data collected from 17 service learning courses were coded within these three major themes, and then further categorized within each major theme as statements that reflect Cognitive Recognition, Perspective Taking, or Student Agency.

Keywords: service learning, critical consciousness, sociopolitical development

How to Cite: Barrera, D. , Willner, L. N. & Kukahiko, K. (2017) “Assessing the Development of an Emerging Critical Consciousness through Service Learning”, Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis. 6(3).