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Open research questions in Service-Learning and Community Engagement

186 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 7,926 Service-Learning and Community Engagement papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Future research could explore the need to understand instructors’ perspectives: how they experience and interpret interactions with students in distress, what factors they believe precipitate such distress, and what strategies they currently use or feel equipped to use in responding to it. Gathering these insights would provide a more comprehensive picture of the institutional ecosystem surrounding student well-being. In parallel, future studies should also examine students’ own recommendations for improving SEPL interventions. Their feedback could guide refinements that enhance the module’s relevance, accessibility, and impact. Once the approach's effectiveness is well established, partnerships with other institutions could be pursued to support broader implementation and long-term sustainability. Scaling the intervention across campuses would allow SEPL to evolve into a shared pedagogical resource rather than a localized initiative. Finally, developing a digital badge for participation in SEPL tutorials could significantly extend the program's reach and visibility. Such a badge would allow students to showcase their SEPL competencies across professional and social networks, making the training more recognizable to employers, peers, and academic communities. This form of micro-credentialing could help normalize SEPL as an essential component of post-secondary education and further embed its value within the wider landscape of professional and lifelong learning.

    Pedagogy of Care Equipped International Post-Secondary Students to Thrive in Times of Post-Pandemic Crisis · 2026 · DOI

  • While the importance of mentorship is well-documented in literature, few studies have explored how this can be systematically integrated into purpose-driven learning models over the long term, particularly that continuous, contextually relevant support—reflected in the lived experiences of its graduates—is essential for ensuring that educators can apply the skills they have learned and lead meaningful change in their communities.

    Purpose-driven learning for social transformation: A case study of the Aga Khan University Institute for educational development · 2026 · DOI

  • The surveys used were not validated instruments and we did not account for potential confounders such as volunteer participation or responder bias. The scope of CARE is within institution, results may not be representative of other organizations, and we do not have a comparison group.

    Practical model for workforce development and community engagement in the public health laboratory · 2026 · DOI

  • There are several limitations that can hinder the validity of the results. First, while a propensity score approach can help reduce selection bias, such models rely on having access to information prior to the college experience that can help predict the likelihood that students will engage in some of the activities such as being in a living-learning community or participating in service-learning. The robust set of control variables helps to alleviate some of these concerns but cannot, by themselves, account for the selection effect. Further, the purpose of this study was to focus on multiple elements of the liberal arts experience rather than isolating a particular aspect or activity.

    The Value of Higher Education in Cultivating Engaged Citizens: Longitudinal Evidence from the Liberal Arts Model · 2026 · DOI

  • Although this study uncovered several key findings regarding the role of a liberal arts education and post-college generative behavior and political engagement, sev- eral questions remain. Future studies can incorporate qualitative and mixed methods to understand how the various mechanisms uncovered in this study impact the devel- opment of graduates’ civic and political selves in a way that quantitative studies can- not. In addition, the lack of statistically significant associations between several of the hallmarks of a liberal arts education, including small class sizes and disciplinary diversity among students, may suggest there may be indirect effects. A future study can examine the role of these liberal arts factors in promoting sense of belonging which in turn promotes generative behavior and political engagement. In particular, future research should go beyond quantitative analysis to unpack the "black box" of belonging through follow-up qualitative methods, such as semi-structured inter- views or open-ended survey questions.

    The Value of Higher Education in Cultivating Engaged Citizens: Longitudinal Evidence from the Liberal Arts Model · 2026 · DOI

  • Although the absence of a control group represents a limitation, it is understandable within the context of educational research, where students are typically organized into existing classroom groups and random assignment is often not feasible. Moreover, assuming equivalence between groups may compromise ecological validity. authentic Consequently, pre–post designs educational settings are widely accepted for examining changes associated with pedagogical interventions (Bransford et al., 2000; Shadish et al., 2002). controlled designs, conducted in more even in and reflecting In the context of SL, pre-experimental pre–post designs without control groups are frequently used to assess both academic the socio-emotional outcomes, complexity of the intervention and the authenticity of the learning environment (Billig and Waterman, 2003). In the present study, a single-group pretest–posttest design was employed, and several strategies were implemented to mitigate key threats to internal validity. Classic methodological work identifies this design as particularly vulnerable to threats such as history, maturation, and testing effects in the absence of a control group (Shadish et al., 2002). To address these concerns, post-intervention outcomes were systematically compared with pretest measures, providing a baseline for evaluating change. Additionally, the relatively short duration of the intervention reduced the likelihood that observed improvements could be attributed to natural maturation rather than to the program itself. Collectively, these measures strengthen the interpretability and credibility of the findings. a context of Special Education Center, Nevertheless, given the relatively small sample size and the specific the generalizability of the results is limited. While the findings point to the potential benefits of SL for psychological well-being, they should be understood as context-dependent. Even so, they offer valuable insights and suggest that similar SL experiences may contribute to promoting psychological well-being in other pre- service teacher populations and educational settings.

    Enhancing pre-service teachers’ psychological well-being through service-learning in physical education · 2026 · DOI

  • This study has several important limitations that should be considered when interpreting the findings. First, the sample size was relatively small, which may limit statistical power and the generalizability of results. Additionally, the exclu- sion of reflections containing fewer than 100 words may have introduced bias by disproportionately removing less detailed or less expressive responses, potentially skew- ing the linguistic analysis toward participants who were more reflective or verbose. However, this is a commonly adopted best-practice threshold in LIWC-based text analy- sis, employed to enhance the reliability and interpretability of derived linguistic measures [9]. Second, the study design relied on non-equivalent measures across time points, with pre-intervention pro- fessional identity assessed the Tagawa PIF scale and post-intervention outcomes derived from LIWC analysis of reflective writing. This limits the ability to draw con- clusions about changes in professional identity over time and necessitates cautious interpretation of differences observed across modalities. Third, the internal consistency of the Tagawa PIF scale in this sample was moderate, and lower than that reported in the original study, raising concerns about the reliability of the pre-intervention measure and the stability of baseline estimates. Please note that this estimate was derived from a relatively small sample (n = 31), which may have contrib- uted to instability in the reliability coefficient [10]. Finally, the very high correlations observed among post- intervention LIWC variables warrant careful interpretation. While these may reflect conceptual integration of professional identity constructs, they may also indicate overlap among lin- guistic categories or analytic redundancy inherent in LIWC- derived measures [8]. Taken together, these limitations suggest that findings should be viewed as preliminary and hypothesis- generating, and future research using larger samples, consis- tent measurement approaches, and refined analytic strategies is needed to further validate and extend these results.

    Cultivating Professional Identity Formation in Medical Students: a Mixed-Methods Study of Nutrition-Focused Service Learning · 2026 · DOI

  • Formal RCR training has become widespread at universities though efficacy studies and attempts to promote these events are lacking, particularly at primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs).

    Report on a Responsible Conduct of Research Conference for Public Undergraduate Institutions in advance · 2025 · DOI

  • ABSTRACT College athletes at the community college level, specifically athletes of color, may experience unique threats to their belonging along multiple dimensions, including but not limited to academic spaces of learning, assessing their athletic merit by comparing themselves to Division I athletes, and racialized tensions within white‐centric campuses.

    Is Academic Advising a Game‐Changer for Student Belonging? A Mixed Methods Study on Community College Athletes of Color · 2025 · DOI

  • At the same time, there is limited research that examines the predictors of greater IAC, and the breadth of partners that secondary special educators collaborate with across school systems, service systems, and communities to support the transition process.

    The Importance of Network Intentionality: Examining Predictors of Interagency Collaboration for Secondary Special Educators · 2024 · DOI

  • How SLCE administrators conceptualize, inhabit, and negotiate their roles as planners remains empirically under-investigated, however, as does when and why planners experience shifts in perspective that affect partnership quality and outcomes.

    Title Pending 6294 · 2024 · DOI

  • Abstract Background Scholars agree that reciprocity is a cornerstone of service‐learning and community engagement (SLCE); however, engagement with this concept varies widely in practice and across disciplines.

    A systematic literature review of reciprocity in engineering <scp>service‐learning</scp>/community engagement · 2023 · DOI

  • To fill this gap in the literature, our study utilizes Photovoice methodology with 11 youth in disciplinary alternative education programs in the Midwest.

    The role of relationships, curriculum design, and program culture in improving academic and behavioral outcomes in a disciplinary alternative education program: A photovoice study · 2023 · DOI

  • Without attention to the ways in which learning is an historicized and sociopolitical activity, efforts to address seemingly intractable equity challenges in K12 STEM education across the intersections of racial and class inequality will remain elusive.

    Youth Enacting Social-Spatial Justice in Middle School STEM: Advancing Justice Work in Hyperlocal and Interscalar Ways · 2022 · DOI

  • This qualitative research study helps fill this gap in the literature by reporting the experiences of 21 resident assistants with minoritized identities attending four different four-year institutions in the United States.

    Resident Assistants With Minoritized Identities: The Promise of Identity-Affirming Microclimates in Enhancing RA Experiences · 2022 · DOI

  • In the third phase, the sampling was broadened chronologically to include research since the 1990s, and limited to the social sciences in order to conduct a trend analysis that considered historical context and growth directions in CE in the social sciences.

    On Responses of Higher Education and Training With(in) Society Through Research, Teaching, and Community Engagement · 2021 · DOI

  • Background: Limited research has examined how service-learning (SL) outcomes align with learning goals proposed for the undergraduate psychology major by the APA Board of Educational Affairs Task Force on Psychology Major Competences.

    What Psychology Students Want From Service-Learning · 2021 · DOI

  • Further research is necessary to understand how individual components of engagement contribute to continued recruitment and retention of professionals working with students with sensory impairments, as well as how long-standing relationships between communities and faculty members contribute to teacher recruitment and retention.

    Project SASI: A Community Engagement Project to Increase Precruitment and Retention of Professionals Working with Students with Sensory Impairments in Rural and Remote Schools · 2020

  • Ultimately, the study endorses a programmatic approach to service-learning that transcends a particular assignment or course, requiring significant attention, investment, and evaluation to ensure positive community impact—especially in cases where broader university service-learning resources are lacking.

    Transforming plans into community impact: Strategic planning as service-learning in public and nonprofit administration graduate programs · 2020 · DOI

  • The paper does not specify how the professor's reciprocal advocacy, mentoring, and advising roles should be integrated within institutional structures that currently separate student services and financial aid offices. Concrete mechanisms for sustained dialogue and coordination between these university departments to support at-risk first-generation learners require documentation and testing.

    Beyond the lab bench: Pathways in inclusion, equity, and diversity in biology education and social justice · 2020 · DOI

  • The relationship between growth mindset interventions and persistence in STEM coursework for underrepresented minority undergraduates in biology has not been directly measured. Controlled studies comparing growth mindset cultivation approaches within the Interconnected Cycle of Reciprocity model against standard advising practices are needed to quantify their differential impact on retention and course performance.

    Beyond the lab bench: Pathways in inclusion, equity, and diversity in biology education and social justice · 2020 · DOI

  • The paper identifies toxic stress and trauma as impediments to student success but does not specify assessment instruments or protocols for identifying these conditions in at-risk first-generation biology students. Validated screening tools and intervention protocols tailored to biology education contexts are needed to systematically detect and address trauma-related barriers.

    Beyond the lab bench: Pathways in inclusion, equity, and diversity in biology education and social justice · 2020 · DOI

  • The application of the lasticity construct to specific biology curriculum design and implementation has not been documented. Research is needed to operationalize lasticity within laboratory courses, field work, and classroom instruction for Native Indigenous undergraduates from Yakama Nation and Navajo Nation, and Latinx students in Central Washington communities, with measurable learning outcomes.

    Beyond the lab bench: Pathways in inclusion, equity, and diversity in biology education and social justice · 2020 · DOI

  • The Interconnected Cycle of Reciprocity framework presented in Figure 2 lacks empirical validation across diverse institutional contexts. Quantitative measurement of how the reciprocity components (student advocacy, mentoring, advising, and culturally-responsive teaching) interact to support at-risk first-generation learners in biology education requires longitudinal comparative studies across different university settings and demographic populations.

    Beyond the lab bench: Pathways in inclusion, equity, and diversity in biology education and social justice · 2020 · DOI

  • While there is a wealth of literature on community-campus engagement (CCE) that incorporates student perspectives from course-based community service learning settings, the stories of students involved in longer-term CCE projects remain underexplored.

    “I had a big revelation”: Student Experiences in Community- First Community-Campus Engagement · 2019 · DOI

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186 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 7,926 Service-Learning and Community Engagement papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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