Learning Outcomes Assessment: Extrapolating from Study Abroad to International Service-Learning

Abstract

For international service-learning to thrive, it must document student
learning outcomes that accrue to participants. The approaches
to international service-learning assessment must be compelling
to a variety of stakeholders. Recent large-scale projects in study
abroad learning outcomes assessment—including the Georgia
Learning Outcomes of Students Studying Abroad Research Initiative
(GLOSSARI)—offer precedent from which international servicelearning
assessment programs may draw. This article outlines five
promising practices to guide international service-learning assessment
activities: (1) focus on outcomes about learning; (2) employ
multiple sources and methods for data collection; (3) invest in compiling
credible comparison groups to build the case for a causal
relationship between international service-learning and learning; (4)
acquire data from multiple and diverse institutions and programs
to better generalize and also to warrant conclusions about best program
practices; and (5) acquire data from large samples of program
participants to provide insights into under-represented groups and
program sites.