Purpose: The article reports on and analyses the creation, development and implementation of a service-learning project involving primary and secondary school pupils and students of education (bachelor's and master's level), carried out in a real educational setting over the course of two academic years. Approach: The project was conducted within a social science didactics framework of issues-centred teaching for the study of socially acute questions and global citizenship. Findings: The research yielded very positive results. The task for student teachers of contextualising their social studies learning in a real educational setting was found to be a motivating factor and provided useful lessons in relation to practical teacher training experiences of this kind. Implications: Greater emphasis should be placed on teacher training projects that include direct experience in real educational settings, particularly in relation to service-learning methodologies involving community service.