The 10th Annual Music Therapy Program Workshop
Her Excellency Ms. Mona Abdul Karim Al Yafei, Director General of Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services (SCHS), is very proud of SCHS’s cadre of specialists and teachers who, through the Music Therapy Program organized by SCHS since 2013 in cooperation with the University of Iowa in South Korea, were able to develop their educational and rehabilitation skills, and keep up with the latest in this field and best practices. She stressed that improving the skills and capabilities of students with disabilities is one of the most important goals of the program.
She extended her sincere thanks to the experts and specialists from the University of Iowa who have participated in the program since its inception and provided their expertise in working with persons with disabilities and SCHS staff with the aim of developing the skills of students with disabilities. Accordingly, SCHS was keen on the fruitful sustainability of the program.
This occurred following the graduation of the ninth class of SCHS employees, which included fifteen instructors and specialists from the Music Therapy Program, and the awarding of University of Iowa-accredited diplomas. The University of Iowa's work team was also honored by His Excellency SCHS's director general, who, God willing, wished for future cooperation.
The tenth annual music therapy workshop was held over three days by SCHS in collaboration with the Korean University of Iowa. It featured a presentation of special methodologies and best practices by Professors Hyun Joo Chung and Juri Yoon. It was attended by female students as well as graduates of SCHS's music therapy program and the twelfth group of Iowa University trainees in the SCHS program.
The course concentrated on the fundamentals of employing music therapy to improve the staff members' diverse skill sets in human services. There were two sections to the workshop: theoretical and practical. The most crucial talents and resources, as well as how to apply them when instructing and preparing students with impairments, were covered in the theoretical portion. Regarding the useful side, a smart device-prepared software was showcased. It was used with the participating staff in South Korea, overseen by Professor Lee, to find out how they felt about it and how far it might be used with SCHS students. A proposal to translate it and incorporate it into future programs was also made. A group of videos were also presented to SCHS staff during their application of the methodologies of the music therapy program with SCHS’s students and to know the opinions of the Korean female trainers and supervisors. And ways to develop the sessions presented to students by them.
Within the Music Therapy Program so far, the number of graduates of SCHS’s staff since its inception has reached (131) employees who contributed to training (1,104) students with disabilities, as the experience gained by the staff within the program leads to the diversity of services provided to SCHS’s students and the development of their skills. About (36) female graduate student at the University of Iowa have graduated, with a total of 12 cohorts in the program so far.
Consequently, Professor Hyun Joo Chung praised the ongoing cooperation with SCHS and the great passion of its staff to learn more in order to provide the best for students with disabilities.
She explained that the Korean Music Therapy Organization donated a set of new tools that are most used in the program, such as drums and bells, in addition to new tools used for the first time that produce natural sounds such as thunder, rain, and wind.
She pointed out that the University of Iowa's cooperation with SCHS is the first of its kind with an Arab institution and is not limited to the aspect related to serving people with disabilities only, but also includes training SCHS's staff with the aim of achieving sustainability in the program and qualifying specialists from SCHS who are able to use it in the best ways.
She emphasized the importance of SCHS issuing a group of publications on music therapy in the future with the aim of educating society about the importance of the program in various fields.
Professor Juri Yoon expressed her great admiration for the progress achieved by SCHS’s staff within the music therapy program year after year, the ability to develop basics that suit the techniques and tools used, the deep understanding of the information that was presented during the workshop, and the possibility of applying what they learned with students with disabilities.
She pointed out that the thirteenth batch of Iowa University female students who are training within the program at SCHS will conduct a comparative study between the various services provided by SCHS and the music therapy program with the aim of integrating these services with the program and achieving the best results.
SCHS's graduate teachers stressed the importance of the program in their acquisition of new skills and strategies in teaching people with disabilities and its role in developing the capabilities of students with disabilities in various fields and providing them with opportunities to improve their quality of life.
The graduates extended their sincere thanks and appreciation to Her Excellency Sheikha Jameela bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, President of SCHS, who was and still is the main supporter of all meaningful work in the interest of people with disabilities.
They also extended their sincere thanks to Her Excellency the Director General of SCHS, Ms. Mona Abdul Karim Al-Yafei, to Ms. Khadija Ahmed Bamakhramah, General Supervisor of the Music Therapy Program and the Planning and Follow-up Officer in SCHS, and to the Iowa University work team for everything they provided in their training and education.