ABSTRACT
Less common have been attempts to examine underlying developmental processes that may frame the constraints and potentials of service-learning. Increased acceptance and support for service-learning during the current decade has brought a reciprocal call for research, usually to document expected outcomes. Piaget’s conception of intelligence parallels the assumptions basic to service-learning. Service-learning places individuals in relational contexts, and thus presents numerous moral and ethical challenges. A developmental framework for service-learning must account for the processes by which youth construct meaning in relation to the social contexts and developmental challenges they encounter. Because service-learning represents an alternative to traditional classroom practices, it often prompts students to examine their own ways of learning. As youth mature and approach adult responsibilities, service-learning may facilitate cognitive, social, and moral growth applicable to the social and leadership challenges of the next century.
