Real and Relevant

Katy Farber, Ed.D, is a professional development coordinator, educator, and writer from Vermont. She is the author of three books about education: Why Great Teachers Quit and How We Might Stop the Exodus; and Change the World with Service Learning: How to Create, Lead and Assess Service Learning Projects; and its new edition, Real and Relevant: a guide for service and project based learning, released in June 2017. Her education articles have been published on CNN’s School of Thought blog, Educational Leadership, Edutopia, and the Synapse. Katy has also taught pre-service and practicing teachers in graduate courses in various university settings in Vermont. Learn more about her work and connect at katyfarber.com.

With an intimate portrayal of her service learning experience, elementary teacher and teacher educator Katy Farber provides a hands–on guide for other teachers to take the plunge into service/project based learning. Her extensive practice and research allows for an up-to-date understanding of service/project based learning, so that teachers can engage students from grades 3-12 at the classroom, school and community level. As a teacher educator, I find this guide invaluable for introducing service/project based learning to my pre-service and practicing teachers.

• PoemPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroductionChapter One: What is Service Learning?Chapter Two: Project Based Learning and Service Learning—what’s what?Chapter Three: Why do Service Learning with Your Students: Research ReviewChapter Four: The Doing Revolution: Service Learning Meets the Needs of Middle School Students Chapter Five: Building a Service and Project Based Learning Climate in the Classroom Chapter Six: Gathering IdeasChapter Seven: Planning Considerations, Step by StepChapter Eight: Partnering with the CommunityChapter Nine: Working in TeamsChapter Ten: Authentic Assessment Chapter Eleven: Powerful Reflection Chapter Twelve: Securing FundingChapter Thirteen: Technologies That Support Project Based and Service LearningChapter Fourteen: Makerspaces and Genius HoursChapter Fifteen: Voices from the Field in Service and Project Based LearningAfterword AppendixReferencesAbout the Author