Service-Learning and the Commuter Student

Abstract

Service-learning is becoming an ever more popular teaching/learning strategy in higher education because of its ability to strengthen both academic and civic engagement. Furthermore, it is a strategy that works with a variety of student populations, including commuter students. While drawing upon commuter students' familiarity with the local community, it helps them develop campus relationships that facilitate their achieving academic success. Although faculty need to pay careful attention to the especially severe demands made on many commuters students' time, assignment flexibility will be rewarded with a degree of engagement difficult to achieve in traditional courses.