What Impacts the Learning in Service Learning? An Examination of Project Structure and Student Characteristics

Abstract

This paper examines factors that can influence how effective a service-learning project is at achieving learning objectives. It is based on data collected from seven Master’s of Public Administration (MPA) courses taught during one semester at a large state university. We find that the key factors of influence on how effective a service-learning project is at achieving learning objectives are (a) the extent that the project is integrated with class materials, (b) whether or not students work in groups, and (c) whether or not the participating students are full-time.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kristina T. Lambright

Kristina T. Lambright is an Assistant Professor of Public Administration at Binghamton University’s College of Community and Public Affairs. She teaches classes on research methods and evaluation. Her research interests include service learning, service delivery structure, contracting and privatization, organizational ownership, and networks. She recently has had articles published in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, American Review of Public Administration, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, and in the Journal of Public Affairs Education. Email: [email protected].

Yi Lu

Yi Lu is an Associate Professor with the Department of Public Management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice-City University of New York. Her research interests are performance management and budgeting, shared services, and MPA education. Her studies have been accepted for publication in such journals as Public Budgeting and Finance, Public Performance and Management Review, the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management, and the Municipal Finance Journal. She can be reached at [email protected].