Service-Learning and Management Education: Introducing the “WE CARE” Approach

Abstract

This article describes the welcomed, evidence-based, complementary, action-oriented, reciprocal, and epistemic (WE CARE) approach to service learning in management education. Service-learning is a teaching method that facilitates the creation of a knowledge-based reciprocal relationship between the university and the community. It is not volunteerism, it is not a universal panacea for educational program deficiencies, and it is not a teaching method that will work for everyone. Rather, service-learning is an opportunity. It is a multidimensional, cooperative, and learner-centered community-based form of experiential education. It is a teaching method that addresses many of the myriad calls for reform in management education today. In this introduction, we offer a set of principles for today's service-learning projects in management--the WE CARE approach. We believe these principles will assist both nascent and current practitioners of service-learning as they move forward to proactively give rise to educational reform.