Aligning the heart and mind
11 June 2009 Aligning the heart and mind
Assistant Professor of Education Mary Kellys EDUC 336 students fostered a strong commitment to public service this past semester. The course, titled Self-Determination in Special Education, included an important service-learning component. Kellys students worked with high school students with disabilities at Geneva High School with a school-to-work transition program and in special education resource rooms. They also worked with senior citizens with disabilities at the ARC Geneva Senior Center in downtown Geneva, with students in the ARC College Experience program at HWS, and with middle school and high school youth from the Bronx, N.Y.
This was Shanelle France 11s first service-learning experience. While taking this course, I realized that there is a vast difference between volunteering and service-learning, she explains. With volunteering, one can go in, do the work, and leave, but an imperative aspect of service-learning is the reflection process, which allows the mind to slow down, and for the heart and memory to align in order to assess the impact on others and on oneself. My preconceived notions, concepts and ideas were challenged at times, fortified at others and overall broadened and opened to alternative perspective and opinions.
All of the projects involve work with individuals with disabilities to tell their own stories through digital technology whether video, PowerPoint, or online multimedia and to enhance self-advocacy skills and practices. For example, as part of their service learning activities, Alysa Law 11, Kyle Sinkoff 10, Alexandra Connell 10, Kelliann Reeland 09, Kelly Peneston 11 helped students develop multimedia presentations about their lives and for their special education planning meetings.
Shavonne Ward 09, Carolyn Pluchino 10, and Hannah Sprague 10 assisted with a Geneva High School School-to-Work Transition program with high school students with disabilities both in school and in their internships, and helped students develop self-advocacy presentations about their internships experiences. One high school student, along with her college student mentor, gave a presentation at the Geneva Rotary Club meeting at the end of April in order to raise awareness about the employment needs of youth with disabilities in the Geneva community.
In other service learning projects, students worked individuals with developmental disabilities from the Ontario ARC at two sites the Geneva Senior Center in downtown Geneva and the HWS College Experience. Nick Georgitseas 10 and Alex Williams 09 worked with individuals at the Senior Center on a variety of activities including developing self-advocacy presentations with individuals to share about hopes and dreams and interests.
At the ARC College Experience program, Nora Devine-Carter 11, Denisse Polanco 11, and Chuan Jenny Wu 12 developed an arts curriculum to teach individuals about visual, performance, and 3-D art expression. Kailey Chidester 10 and Amanda Stern 09 developed a video about shared and differing experiences with college life. Emily Pelo 10 and Laura Harrington-Knopf 10 worked with the college experience students on a series of videos about community internship programs.
Zaira Augusto 11, Katrina Havrish 10, and France facilitated a two-day digital storytelling workshop called Sharing Youth Voices in March. The Sharing Youth Voices digital storytelling workshop aimed to encourage and inspire middle school and high school students, with and without disabilities, through technology, digital storytelling, and self-advocacy. Middle and high school students, with their college mentors, created and shared digital stories that explored important and meaningful topics like global warming, neighborhood identity and pride, discrimination and judgment, cursing among children, musical expression, and dance.
I find the impact much more long-lasting and pertinent when I hear personal experiences from the people themselves. Hearing the stories and opinions from the voices of children was such an enriching and encouraging experience, reflects France.Every speaker has left such a powerful and moving impact on my experience both as a soon-to-be teacher. I feel so blessed to have been given the chance to have heard firsthand from a number of individuals and from varied perspectives.