ABSTRACT
Service-learning itself explicitly uses inquiry-guided learning to help accomplish the goals of this civic mission, because it gives students firsthand experience in applying the process of inquiry to inform action on important social issues. Service-learning is a form of experiential education in which students render meaningful service in community settings that present complex issues related to academic material. Through guided reflection, individually and collaboratively, students critically examine their experiences from academic, as well as personal and civic, perspectives, thereby deepening their understanding of course material, their self-awareness, and their capacities as citizens and change agents. Sometimes there is a tension between the learning objectives of inquiry and service objectives, especially in terms of the meaning and significance of both time and success. Inquiry-guided learning focuses on process; it acknowledges that student learning rarely proceeds in an orderly fashion, and it honors failure or error as a source of substantial learning.
