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Redesigning Web design.

Article Excerpt
Abstract

Including service-learning into the Web curricular offers teachers a powerful pedagogical strategy and promotes students to take an active role within their communities. This qualitative research study conducted in 2004 with Pace University students and the Greenburgh Central 7 School District explains what happens when teachers integrate service experiences into the Web curricular. This paper discusses the effect of service experiences on teaching and learning. Furthermore, this paper describes how students react and develop when this strategy is implemented.

Context and Background

Service-learning is now recognized as one of the keystones of the educational reform movement. It has been further defined as a teaching strategy that depends on reciprocal university-community partnerships. Service-learning provides an innovative pedagogical approach to realizing higher education's civic responsibilities (Bringle, Games, & Malloy, 1999; Bringle, Hatcher, & Games, 1997). Stevens (2002) argued that service-learning, which combines a curriculum of learning with performing necessary services in the community, can be pivotal in the continuing need to build character, citizenship, and a sense of ethics. In 1983, Ernest Boyer for example, emphasized that the act of service introduces students to new people and new ideas. It further establishes, according to Boyer, connections between academics and society at large and is inherent to the mission of higher education (Vernon & Foster, 2002, p. 208).

Community visionaries are aware of the importance of building sustainable models that strengthen the community. At Johnson County Community College, community leaders were instrumental in defining and establishing a new graduation with Civic Honors program (Carlsen, Lindahl, & Lindahl, 2004). Graduation with Civic Honors is a simple idea: At the culmination of an academic career, a student received recognition for being well-rounded in academics and community service. The Pennsylvania State University, The Ohio State University, and the University of Wisconsin-Extension are documenting and sharing models of outreach scholarship in a partnership for change (Childers, Martin, Dann, Dufour, Bruns, & Wise, 2002). These three universities are fostering leaders committed to (1) defining models of outreach scholarship, (2) building a network of leaders who can learn from each other, and (3) creating an outreach culture at their respective institutions. From the perspective of a multicultural and increasingly global society, higher education has a responsibility to help students develop a multifaceted character, proficient at dealing with various cultures (Rhoads, 2003).

Web development is a challenging area that is of increasing interest to students in information systems and other disciplines. It is necessary to complement classroom lectures with hands-on laboratory exercises to reinforce the material, but providing meaningful laboratory exercises is challenging. Although the benefits of service-learning are...

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