On Friday, April 15th, St. John’s Staten Island
Campus students, enrolled in Education 1001: Human Learning and
Development course, were greeted by members of "Lifestyles for the
Disabled" , a non-profit organization that works with
developmentally disabled adults. Associate Professor and Senior
Vincentian Research Fellow, Regina Mistretta, Ed.D, hosted
"Lifestyles for the Disabled" in The School of
Education’s Teaching and Learning Lab as part of a mutually
beneficial lesson enriching her students' understanding of human
learning for those with special needs.
During the Spring 2011 semester, the
undergraduate students enrolled in Human Learning and Development
were required to complete the Internship Placement Project, in which all
students were placed at various non-profit organizations and
cultural institutions in order to learn about the lives of
school-aged children and young adults. The visit from
“Lifestyles for the Disabled” was an opportunity
for these students to directly interact and learn from those with
disabilities.
"Lifestyles for the Disabled" is a non-profit
organization that strives to provide the intellectually disabled
members of the Staten Island community with realistic work settings
and experiences. The mission of "Lifestyles" is to provide
quality learning experiences that enable all program participants,
regardless of their disability, to become productive members of
society, live their lives with dignity and to operate as
independently as possible.
During the collaboration, Dr. Mistretta’s students
engaged the group in tasks involving geometric two and three
dimensional shapes. These tasks provided the members of
“Lifestyles for the Disabled” with learning
opportunities that enhanced their understanding of mathematical
relationships and real-life applications. The group, using
manipulatives, or moveable objects, learned how to use SMARTboard Technology, navigated websites to
investigate spatial relationships, determined geometric patterns
and learned Euler’s Formula.
The dynamic session was not only a success for the members of
"Lifestyles for the Disabled" but also for the
students. They gained practical experience working with
special needs populations, acquired skills with differentiating
instruction and used concrete materials and technology to build
conceptual understandings. "It was extremely rewarding", says Dr.
Mistretta. "It is these types of partnerships that provide
opportunities for teachers to become not ordinary but extraordinary
due to their in-depth understanding and skills for serving diverse
populations of students."
As a result of the interaction with members of "Lifestyles
for the Disabled", St. John's students became more
confident with their ability to teach additional segments of the
population. “Before our session, I was a little nervous that
I would not be capable of helping a person with a disability”, said
student Michelle Korn. “I reassured myself that my decision
to go into the five-year program for Childhood Education and Special
Education was the right one to make. I look
forward to working with these people again, and having a wonderful
time!”
Photo Gallery
For more information about the “Lifestyles
for the Disabled” Staten Island
Campus visit and The
School of Education, contact:
Susann Ragone
Assistant Dean
The School of Education
DaSilva Academic Center, Room 207C
(718) 390-4308
ragones@stjohns.edu