Chapter 8: Fostering a Civic Ethos: Teacher Candidates as Effective Citizens in an Urban PDS, Special Education Context

Service learning is an instructional approach derived from the philosophical position of experiential learning. Pedagogically, service learning connects academic content to community experiences and uses critical reflection as a means to promote learning. Service learning has been shown to improve teacher candidate dispositions toward diverse populations, making it a valuable tool for educating teacher candidates. An overview of the University of North Florida professional development school model of preparing teachers in a clinically rich, authentic setting and its impact on one local Jacksonville middle school is discussed. This chapter further looks at the impact of service learning in a middle school, special education context on teacher candidates as civically engaged learners.