International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Vol. 2 No. 12 [Special Issue - June 2012] 83 Promoting Civic Engagement through a Service Learning Experience Dr. Yu Ghee Wee Senior Lecturer Faculty of Entrepreneurship and Business Universiti Malaysia Kelantan Malaysia Prof. Dr. Farok bin Zakaria Director Centre of Language Studies and Generic Development Universiti Malaysia Kelantan Malaysia Abstract In recent decades, many indicators of civic involvement among adolescents have declined. While debate continues about advantages and disadvantages of mandating community service in universities, the practice of compelling adolescents to participate in community service is increasingly common. This study explores the civic behaviours, opinions, knowledge and dispositions of undergraduate students through their participation in a community- based intercultural leadership program in Vietnam. In this program, students from six different countries were made to visit poor village entrepreneurs and offer their assistance in business improvement. Preliminary findings suggest that students who are competent for civic action, justice oriented, personally responsible and have high civic accountability, enjoy the service learning experience in the village. Students who rate the community service program as meaningful, exciting and educational are more compelled to participate voluntarily in the coming year. The goal of this research is to affirm a set of civic measures that are appropriate for use with youth participants in community service so as to promote civic education and inculcate civic engagement as lifelong practice. Keyword: civic engagement, service learning, community service Introduction In the realm of advanced technology, the importance of social interaction and network webbing the community, the essence of social responsibilities, social trust as well as democratic citizenship expected of all residents in this universal, are often neglected. There is evidence that increasing numbers of Americans perceive their society to be suffering a moral decline (Galston, 2007). A half century ago, more than 50 percent of Americans responded affirmatively when asked, ―Do you think people in general lead as good lives—honest and moral—as they used to?‖ By 2002, it had fallen even further, to only 21 percent. This perception of moral decline is especially pronounced in citizens‘ evaluations of young people. When asked, ―Do you think that young people today have as strong a sense of right and wrong as t hey did, say, 50 years ago?‖ Fifty-seven percent answered affirmatively in 1952, and today, that figure has bottomed out at only 19 percent (Anonymous, 2002). Such decline and ignorance in civic behaviours and civic knowledge further create gaps among the modern apes, threatening social cohesion and global prosperity. Sustainable cities for sustainable community which call for poverty eradication, environmental protection, water and energy conservation program, green building program and such often fail due to poor public participation. In addressing such concern, many universities have taken the initiative to increase awareness among the adolescents in campuses by adopting civic education or implementing a series of service learning program. Background of study In a study conducted by Hollander (2011), most respondents representing the research universities describe civic education as: ―service-learning or community-based learning and engaged research and/or scholarship‖.