The incorporation of service-learning in the university: the experience of the University of Barcelona

Abstract

This article offers an account of how service-learning was introduced and rolled out at the University of Barcelona, focusing on two interlinked aspects. The first one is the work carried out at university level under the helm of the Service-Learning Group(UB), which is made up of academics from the various faculties who work towards promoting service-learning and granting it institutional recognition. The second aspect is the work carried out within each faculty, through different models, which seek to implement service-learning across all areas and disciplines. Work at both levels views service-learning as a cross-cutting proposal to achieve the university’s main missions —teaching, research and transference— whilst adopting a social responsibility perspective. Acknowledging that service-learning is not the only possible strategy, the review offered in our paper does provide criteria and actions that justify the expansion service-learning at university level.