Service-Learning Australia

Research shows the reflection outcomes for students generally fall into three categories:

• Academic learning outcomes.
• Personal development outcomes.
• Civic engagement outcomes.
  

Academic learning outcomes.
Reflection helps students gain a deeper understanding of what they learn, applying what they learn to real life situations, and developing increased problem solving skills (Eyler & Giles, 1999, p. 173). Students also improve basic skills, such as reading, writing, and speaking, and develop higher level thinking through reflection (Conrad & Hedin, 1987, p. 40).
 
Personal development outcomes.
Opportunities to reflect on service help young people feel more confident in themselves and their accomplishments, connect to others, and link the personal and the academic. Students develop an increased sense of personal power and are better able to clarify and accomplish their goals.
 
Civic engagement outcomes.
Studies by Eyler and Giles (1999) demonstrated that reflection is a predictor of openness to new ideas, ability to see issues in a new way, “increased commitment to use of public policy to achieve social justice, and a more systemic locus of problem causes and solutions” (p. 173). Eyler, Giles, and Schmiede (1996) discovered that students engaged in critical reflection are more likely to apply what they learn to understanding and solving social problems.