More and more schools are using service activities to support learning, experts say. In fact, the state of Maryland and two dozen school districts around the country now require students to perform community service. Mandatory service learning remains controversial, however. In well-designed service learning programs, students do more than ladle out soup to the homeless or pick up trash in public parks, experts say. Service learning activities are extremely diverse.
Students work at hospitals, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and day-care centers.
They promote recycling efforts, monitor air and water quality, and clean up pollution. They plant bulbs in parks and supervise recreational play. They tutor other students, check people's blood pressure, and raise money for charities. They advocate civic action and lobby their elected officials. Tutoring is a common service activity.