Mindful “Servants:” Reflective Practices in a High School Service-Learning Classroom

Abstract

Increasingly, public school teachers, administrators, and students are turning towards including reflective practices, such as “mindfulness” activities, in their daily teaching and learning experiences. This article shows the importance of how practitioners and students use and experience these practices, especially in a service-learning program aimed at pushing students to change habits and ways of thinking. This qualitative study explores reflective techniques applied to a high school service-learning course that was created and maintained to push students out of their “comfort zones” and further into community exploration and self-reflection. Results of the study conclude that reflective activities were effective in class and service contexts, supported personal growth and connection, and that students experienced “buy-in,” embracing weekly journal assignments, one-one-one-conversations, and meditation.

Keywords: Mindfulness, service-learning, reflection, meditation, adolescents, high school