Reflective practice in service learning: possibilities and limitations

Purpose – The paper seeks to promote the integration of reflective learning within a broader service learning pedagogy at the undergraduate university level. Furthermore, it aims to illustrate various models for service learning that span multiple academic disciplines.Design/methodology/approach – The paper illustrates three ways in which reflective learning can be used to enhance the learning potential of service learning pedagogy. The subjective experiences inform its own stories that it presents as examples, supported as they are by the findings of prior empirical studies.Findings – The paper believes that multi‐dimensional learning has been achieved in each of the three examples presented. Service learning extends the academic learning of students and allows for personal and societal learning to occur, not simply as a result of having a service experience, but of spending time reflecting on it.Practical implications – Practical implications are particular to the students themselves, as the service exp...