Exploring the Role of the Kariton Klasrum Project as a Service-Learning Strategy in Values Formation

As education moves towards further development, many meaningful ways to strengthen learners’ values formation have emerged. One of these is the service-learning method, known for having positive results in terms of character. Similarly, in the Philippine context, the Kariton Klasrum Project (KKP) serves as a service-learning strategy with a lot of potential in values education. However, despite utilizing KKP, no research has captured implementers’ perspectives, leaving no recorded evidence regarding the specific moral outcomes to them. KKP was originally introduced by the Dynamic Teen Company, and with their consent, was adapted and implemented starting in 2011 by Elizabeth Seton School-South, a private basic education institution in Imus, Cavite. The KKP engages the grade 10 learners in an outreach work with the children from Riverside, Imus, a community assisted by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The engagement’s preparation spanned for five months and culminated in a one-day service-learning session that involved teaching the basics of reading and writing, feeding session, and providing medical assistance. In this study, the researcher explored the role of KKP as an initiative that supports values formation among executors. Using the Qualitative Descriptive Research method, the perceptions of 10 participants from grade 10 revealed that KKP contributed to their development of responsibility, compassion, motivation, collaboration, and reflection. The findings add to the limited body of literature on KKP as a service-learning strategy in the Philippine basic education and highlight an emerging strategy for nurturing compassionate, socially responsible learners prepared to make a difference.