Service-Learning for Sustainable Development: Сase-Study Evidence from War Conditions

Authors

  • Myroslava Chekh Ukrainian Catholic University
  • Oksana Vasylytsia Ukrainian Catholic University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63410/jds2025/08

Keywords:

Russian-Ukrainian War, Service Learning, Sustainable, Development, Higher Education, Social Responsibility

Abstract

Higher education plays a crucial role in advancing sustainable development, particularly under wartime conditions. At the same time, the challenges posed by war have acted as a catalyst, prompting both teachers and students to actively engage in service learning within the educational process. As awareness, student values, and social responsibility shift, universities are increasingly focused on designing impactful courses centered on sustainable community development and social enterprise. To support
this transition, it is imperative to encourage the adoption of methodologies that adhere to sustainability principles.
This article provides a theoretical analysis and examines practical cases that highlight the attributes positioning service learning as an effective strategy for promoting education for sustainable development. The pedagogical framework of service learning is explored and linked to sustainability principles within the university context.
Particular attention is given to the features of introducing and implementing service-learning projects during wartime in Ukraine and integrating them into education for sustainable development in higher education using a systemic approach. The results obtained confirm that the service-learning approach effectively implements all six principles of sustainable development in higher education under wartime conditions.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Aramburuzabala, P., & Cerrillo, R. (2023). Service-learning as an approach to educating for sustainable development. Sustainability, 15(14),

https://doi.org/10.3390/su151411231

Aramburuzabala, P., McIlrath, L., & Opazo, H. (Eds.). (2019). Embedding service-learning in European higher education: Developing a culture of civic engagement. Routledge.

Baldwin, S. C., Buchanan, A. M., & Rudisill, M. E. (2007). What teacher candidates learned about diversity, social justice, and themselves

from service-learning experiences. Journal of Teacher Education, 58, 315–317.

Braßler, M. (2018). Interdisciplinary glocal service learning: Enhancement of students’ interdisciplinary competence, self-awareness and

glocal civic activism. Zeitschrift für Hochschulentwicklung, 13(2), 81–98.

Bringle, R. G., Hatcher, J. A., Sandmann, L. R., Thornton, C. H., & Jaeger, A. J. (2009). Innovative practices in service-learning and curricular

engagement. New Directions for Higher Education, 2009(147), 37–46.

Bringle, R. G., & Hatcher, J. A. (1995). A service-learning curriculum for faculty. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 2(1),

–122.

Brower, H. H. (2011). Sustainable development through service learning: A pedagogical framework and case example in a Third World context. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 10, 58–76.

Burde, D., Kapit, A., Wahl, R. L., Guven, O., & Skarpeteig, M. I. (2017). Education in emergencies: A review of theory and research. Review of Educational Research, 87(3), 619–658.

Butin, D. W. (2010). Service-learning in theory and practice: The future of community engagement in higher education. Palgrave Macmillan.

Cardozo, M. L., & Novelli, M. (2018). Education in emergencies: Tracing the emergence of a field. In A. Verger, G. Kosar-Altinyelken, & M.

Novelli (Eds.), Global education policies (2nd ed., pp. 233–254). Bloomsbury. https://doi.org/10.5040/9781474296052

Chekh, M. (2023). Sustainable development in the conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian war: The local and global dimension. Journal of Development Studies, 4(1), 48–58. https://doi.org/10.52340/jds.2023.04.04.05

Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities. (2012). Guidelines for the introduction of sustainability in the curriculum. https://www.

crue.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Directrices_Sosteniblidad_Crue2012.pdf

Coombs, H. (2022). Case study research: Single or multiple [White paper]. Southern Utah University. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7604301

Cushman, E. (2002). Sustainable service-learning programs. College Composition and Communication, 54, 40–65.

du Plessis, R., & Breshears, D. (2023). “Backstage”

service learning: Using interdisciplinary collaboration to provide service-learning experiences to large and/or underfunded communication courses. Communication Teacher, 37(4), 327–333. https://doi.org/10.1080/17404622.2023.2252911

Eyler, J., & Giles, D. E., Jr. (1999). Where’s the learning in service-learning? Jossey-Bass.Furco, A., & Kent, K. (2019). From the guest editors:

State of service-learning and community engagement around the world. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 23, 1–2

Furco, A., & Norvell, K. (2019). What is service-learning? Making sense of the pedagogy and practice. In P. Aramburuzabala, L. McIlrath, & H. Opazo (Eds.), Embedding service-learning in European higher education (pp. 13–35). Routledge.

Greenfield, N. M. (2024). Universities join forces to help save body, mind and spirit. University World News, 20.

Jacoby, B. (2015). Service-learning essentials: Questions, answers, and lessons learned. Jossey-Bass.

Jordaan, M., & Mennega, N. (2022). The changing face of community engagement in a time of crisis: Insights into an undergraduate service-learning course. In International case studies in service learning (pp. 85–97). Emerald Publishing. https://www.emerald.com/

books/edited-volume/15894/International-Case-Studies-in-Service-Learning

Kenworthy, A. L., & Opatska, S. (2023). Teaching during war in Ukraine: Service-learning as a tool for facilitating student learning and engagement during times of uncertainty and crisis. Journal of Management Education, 47(4), 417–439. https://doi.org/10.1177/10525629231166695

Kenworthy, A. L., Chekh, M., Kozlova, V., Opatska, S., Shestak, A., Trevoho, O., Tychenko M., & Tytarenko, M. (2024). ‘See us’: An urgent call

to collaborate with colleagues in crisis environments around the world. Teaching in Higher Education, 30(2), 544–554. https://doi.org/10

.1080/13562517.2024.2372574

Kenworthy-U’Ren, A. L., & Peterson, T. O. (2005). Service-learning and management education: Introducing the “We Care” approach. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 4, 272–277.

Pearce, J. M. (2009). Appropedia as a tool for service learning in sustainable development. Journal of Education for Sustainable Development, 3, 45–53.

ServU Project (Ukrainian Catholic University). (n.d.). Objectives. https://servu.ucu.edu.ua/en/objectives/Stanton, T. K., Giles, D. E., & Cruz, N. I. (1999). Service-learning: A movement’s pioneers reflect on its origins, practice, and future. Jossey-Bass.

Ukrainian Catholic University. (2022, September 13). How the “Psychological Counseling Office” at UCU operates during wartime. https://ucu.

edu.ua/news/yak-v-uku-pratsyuye-u-chas-vijny-psyhologichna-poradnya/

Ukrainian Catholic University. (2022a, March 11). UCU is the first university in Ukraine to institutionally implement the Service Learning approach. https://web.archive.org/web/20220313084937/https://ucu.edu.ua/

news/uku-pershyj-universytet-v-ukrayiniyakyj-na-instytutsijnomu-rivni-vprovadzhuyeosvitnij-pidhid-service-learning-uspilnooriyentovane-navchannya).

Ukrainian Catholic University. (2022b, 10 July). Restoring self-confidence: How UCU students help displaced persons and wounded people during the war. Social Work Program. https://ucu.edu.ua/news/povernuty-viru-v-sebe-yak-studenty-uku-dopomagayut-pereselentsyam-ta-poranenym-u-chas-vijny/

Ukrainian Catholic University. (2022d, December 13). Learning through service: Summary of the month of service-oriented learning at UCU.

https://ucu.edu.ua/news/navchannya-cherezsluzhinnya-pidsumky-misyatsya-suspilnooriyentovanogo-navchannya-v-uku/

Ukrainian Catholic University. (2023, March 24).

Being a lawyer is an opportunity to help people – Khrystyna Kovtsun, Head of the UCU Legal Clinic. https://ucu.edu.ua/news/buty-pravnykom-tse-mozhlyvist-dopomagaty-lyudyam-hrystyna-kovtsun-kerivnytsya-yurydychnoyi-kliniky-uku/

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2017). Education for sustainable development goals. UNESCO.

Winthrop, R., & Kirk, J. (2008). Learning for a bright future: Schooling, armed conflict, and children’s well-being. Comparative Education Review, 52(4), 639–661. https://doi.org/10.1086/59130

Downloads

Published

2026-01-14

How to Cite

Chekh, M. ., & Vasylytsia, O. . (2026). Service-Learning for Sustainable Development: Сase-Study Evidence from War Conditions. THE JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENT STUDIES, 6(1), 126–139. https://doi.org/10.63410/jds2025/08