Service Learning

When you look around you, what do you see?

Have you ever stopped and looked more deeply to notice the multitude of ways we can engage in change for the better?

Every student at ISY is provided the opportunity to give of their time, effort, thought, and material items and through that they begin to learn what Compassion, Kindness, Generosity, and Unconditional Love really means. They get to take all that learning they’ve done in school and in their personal lives and actually put it into good use! They integrate, empower, touch, explore, care, develop, practice and grow into a community that serves and learns along with the communities they are supporting.

They always get way more out of Service Learning than what they put into it. The more effort they put in, the greater the results they will receive. But these results are not measured in Grades like As, Bs, Cs, or 7s, 6s, and 5s, they’re measured in Joy, Contentment, and Satisfaction by knowing in their hearts that they have addressed an authentic need and what they’ve done has had a positive effect on the lives of others, and on the environment.

Service Learning at ISY

Throughout ISY you will increasingly notice service learning happening both in the classroom, and in a wide-range of after school programs. Students can be seen using the 5 Stages of Service Learning, a method that supports the identification of authentic needs and a process that leads towards real solutions. See the 5 Stages of Service Learning explained below.

Investigation – Preparation – Action – Reflection – Demonstration

These 5 stages can help students greatly with identifying authentic needs, and preparing for an action that addresses these needs in an impactful way. Reflection is at the core because it supports the whole process every step of the way. In this way, if in their course of study, a student comes across an authentic need, they then have a pathway that allows them to turn something that is unsatisfactory into a challenge and an opportunity for learning and growing.

In order to identify authentic needs students need to investigate. The investigation stage is all about uncovering the truths that can be found through effective research, which we call the MISO method. MISO stands for Media, Interviews, Surveys, and Observations. Often this research will connect directly with one or more of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs are another sign-post that helps students know when they’re on the right track towards Service Learning.

ISY has clearly identified that the next logical step in the education of our students is to whole-heartedly embrace service learning. This is because when learning takes place within a real-world context students understand the “why” of what they are doing in the classroom and they become even more motivated to learn. Ultimately, we believe that this approach will result in the long-term flourishing of our students in a complex 21st century world.

Below are a list of the Service Learning Groups at ISY with a description of what they do.

Secondary School Service Learning Groups

ISY PARTNER PROJECTS

ISY supports three service organizations. All of these have Service Learning student support clubs associated with them. Each year ISY raises money for the Chinthe Fund which is then equally distributed to our three partners.