One teacher, Maureen, had a conversation with her students about the ways schools operate. The class as a whole developed a phrase that consisted of, “Are you learning, or are you just getting it done?” This quote was placed in the classroom to ensure that the students were constantly focusing on the importance of their education. The teacher’s goal was to give the students an objective to aim for in their future (Kaye & Connolly, With common Core State Standards, Why Service Learning Matters Even More, 2013). When students are a part of a service-learning project, they will not need to ask why they are studying a certain topic but rather see how the topic leads them to take action. Maureen Connolly stated,
As schools progress in their implementation of service learning, students may begin to design their own learning around the causes that matter the most to them. They may see school as a place where they can go to make changes in their world. The purposeful view of learning will certainly lead to increased academic and character development for our students. (Connolly, 2012)
The major goal with the Common Core State Standards is to provide a guide of what students need to be able to do, but the methods of instruction are left up to the educators. The educators are the people who directly impact a student’s educational experiences, and if they can provide an authentic and meaningful experience to students, then the application of learning in school will drastically change. As a teacher, one can determine if he or she wants the learning in his or her class to occur through observations, exams, and tests, or through assisting and challenging the students to discover why learning matters and how they have a valuable role in society (Kaye & Connolly, With common Core State Standards, Why Service Learning Matters Even More, 2013).
Student Motivation
Challenges constantly arise in education that affect how teachers deliver their instruction. One of the biggest challenges teachers face is the lack of student motivation. Student engagement consists of students having a desire and wanting to learn the information that is being taught to them. Intrinsic motivation comes from within, and if we engage our students, then the likelihood of students becoming more motivated will increase. That leaves teachers with the question of, “How can we best engage students in a learning process that maximizes their ability to meet and exceed the CCSS in our daily classrooms and encourages the habits of learning we want to see?” (Kaye & Connolly, With common Core State Standards, Why Service Learning Matters Even More, 2013)
An answer to this question is service-learning. Through these projects students will be increasing their academic rigor through application of skills, they will participate in analysis of their experience, they will take initiative, problem solve, develop career opportunities, make global connections, and apply their knowledge in a way to benefit those in the community they live in. These opportunities that the students have through service-learning seem to be in perfect alignment with the goals of the Common Core State Standards (Kaye & Connolly, With common Core State Standards, Why Service Learning Matters Even More, 2013).