Evaluating Service-learning Impacts on University Students’ Developmental Outcomes through a Mixed Method Comparison Study

In a mixed method study conducted in 2017-18, we analysed the relative impact of service learning (S-L) versus equivalent non-service-learning (N-S-L) course experiences at Lingnan University. The quantitative part compared the self-perceived developmental gains of 250 S-L students with those of 169 N-S-L students, who had studied the same subjects with the same instructors. In the qualitative part, 61 students from 16 S-L courses participated in end of term focus groups. Although S-L students reported greater improvements than N-S-L students in 6 out of 7 developmental domains (subject-related knowledge, communication skills, social competence, organisation skills, problem-solving skills, and civic orientation), these differences in gains were not statistically significant. Nonetheless, the focus groups revealed that S-L students perceived that they had had distinctive opportunities for development through interaction with community stakeholders and real-life knowledge application.