A STUDY OF THE EFFICACY OF SERVICE LEARNING ON STUDENTS’ LEARNING OUTCOME

Abstract

The main purpose of the study is to explore how service learning involvement affects students' learning outcome. Subjects were students who took the course of English Teaching for Children for 1 year and were required to take at least one module test of TKT (Teaching Knowledge Test). The results indicate that those who participated in service-learning programs and fulfilled one or more service hours had better performance on the test. 46 students took the test of Module 1, and 40 of them have been involved in service-learning program, with 42% reaching band 3 and 58% reaching band 2. In addition, attendance and participation in group work, discussion and personal reflection are also taken into account to evaluate students' performance. The results shows that not only do students who devoted time to service learning get acquainted with teaching process but they also obtain hands-on experience and show positive career development. It is concluded that service learning helps contribute to students' positive attitudinal outcome and better preparation for tests and that service learning integrated into teaching course is increasingly important.