Chapter 11: Developing A More Critically Minded Citizenry: Rethinking Service-Learning in the Social Studies

This chapter looks at how the integration of critical pedagogy in the social studies helps students better understand how social injustices are perpetuated and how students can take a more active and reflective approach to completing service projects in high school. Based on a study conducted in an U.S. Government class in a large Midwestern high school, the authors discuss how connecting in-class studies of government agencies—specifically the Department of Housing and Urban Development—to local issues through service projects revealed a more critically minded approach to citizenship and working toward social justice. Findings from this mixed methods study show that the approaches used in this classroom illuminated reasons for why inequities persist rather than just completion of required service hours and that involvement in such projects resulted in students’ desire to continue to be involved in community service beyond completion of the course.