The Institutionalization of Service-Learning at Spanish Universities
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Service-learning is conceived of as an active pedagogical approach that integrates community
services into learning processes. Although this practice has a long history in the Americas, it is still
emerging in some European countries. Since the Bologna Process, Spanish universities have faced
challenges associated with introducing learner-centered pedagogies and fostering students’ social
responsibility. However, service-learning fuses these two lines of intervention.
This article aims to provide data about the degree to which service-learning has been established and
institutionalized at Spanish universities. To obtain these data, an electronic questionnaire based on a
self-assessment rubric for the institutionalization of service-learning in higher education was sent to
selected informants at Spanish universities. The results showed that most Spanish universities are at
a very early stage in the institutionalization of service-learning; in fact, only a few appear to have
mechanisms in place to achieve such institutionalization. The authors reflect on the need to support
this emerging pedagogical practice to improve the quality of education and community engagement
in the context of Spanish higher education