Comprehensive Special Education Diploma October 17, 2023, to January 18, 2024
As part of developing the skills of teachers and parents and developing their field experience in the field of special education, Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services (SCHS) is organizing a Comprehensive Special Education Diploma, from October 17, 2023, to January 18, 2024. SCHS organizes this course in cooperation with Ajman University.
The diploma includes the following specializations: (Intellectual Disability, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Early Intervention, Inclusive Education, Assistive Technologies). In addition to two new courses offered for the first time: (Adapted Physical Education (APE), and Simplified Reading).
Since 2019, the comprehensive special education diploma, which SCHS organizes annually in cooperation with Ajman University, has witnessed the participation of 110 people from inside and outside the UAE. This year approximately 30 people are participating in the Diploma with the aim of enhancing their training experience, raising the level of skills, and enhancing specializations. In addition to benefiting from the professional expertise provided by SCHS.
Her Excellency Mona Abdul Karim Al Yafei, Director General of SCHS, confirmed that SCHS is one of the leading Emirati institutions that has offered specialized training programs for those working with people with disabilities, internally and externally. These programs were enhanced through the special education teacher preparation workshop, which was transformed into a specialized diploma program in cooperation with Ajman University. With the increasing professional need for this type of program and the development of training needs, the comprehensive special education diploma comes as a new step in this direction.
Al-Yafei explained the most important conditions for participation in the diploma, which are that the trainee must be proficient in the Arabic language, reading and writing, must have a high school diploma as a minimum, and be someone interested in special education or working within its field. Participation is available to all applicants from various Arab countries, while SCHS provides the necessary facilities for trainees wishing to complete vocational training. However, it does not bear any costs related to accommodation, travel, or the necessary visas.
The program includes “Introduction to Special Education”, introduction to SCHS, learning about the rights of persons with disabilities, Introduction to special education, its goals and the disabilities it addresses, an introduction to mental disability, an introduction to autism spectrum disorder, an introduction to early intervention, an introduction to inclusive education, Assistive technologies, APE, and simplified reading. The program was designed to be comprehensive in special education in its various aspects, with trainers with long experience in the field.
This year, for the first time, the diploma includes two additional courses:
"APE" which specializes in meeting the distinct needs of students with disabilities individually, who cannot benefit from general physical education lessons or need additional services for APE. The course is presented by Mr. Mustafa Al Dhuwaini, special education teacher at the Sharjah Autism Center.
Simplified reading
The second new course is “Simplified Reading,” presented by Technical Operations Officer Muhammad Al-Nabulsi, in which simplified reading will be introduced as a type of facilitated reading, which is a method of presenting information to people with learning difficulties and mental disabilities through the use of simple, uncomplicated vocabulary, and the use of appropriate graphic images that help the reader to understand the content of each paragraph, and the clear design. The course will also include the types of documents used in simplified reading, the Arabic standards for simplified reading, and some templates.
Intellectual Disability
Dr. Samia Muhammad Saleh, Director of Al-Wafa School for Capacity Development, explained that the importance of preparing a comprehensive special education diploma comes within the framework of social responsibility, which includes training those concerned with working with persons with disabilities and their families, on many specialized topics in the field of disability, most notably diagnosis, evaluation, and developing individual educational programs. It also includes behavior management and family counseling, as well as training people with severe and multiple disabilities and rare syndromes.
Autism Spectrum Disorder
For her part, Dr. Siham Al-Humaimat, Director of the Sharjah Autism Center, confirmed that the comprehensive special education diploma program highlights a group of basic topics in the field of autism spectrum disorder, such as diagnosing and evaluating children with autism spectrum disorder and the most important diagnostic tools and methods for using them. In addition, it would present modern trends in the field such as therapeutic and rehabilitative programs in educating people with autism, how to prepare an individual educational program for the child, the areas included in the program to reach the child to the best level, and what are the latest practices in the field of speech, language, and sensory processing.
Early Intervention
For his turn, Mr. Mohamed Fawzi, Director of the Early Intervention Center, indicated that the main goal of the program is to take the specialization a step ahead and improve the services provided to infants and young children in accordance with the latest and best international practices. During this specialized diploma, participants will be able to become familiar with the general concepts of early intervention and the modern philosophies on which early intervention depend on, such as the environment, nature and the importance of partnership and family empowerment, education and training according to modern learning theories, functional assessment outcomes, providing innate learning opportunities and following the child’s leadership, interventions based on activities and daily routines, and the early intervention work team in addition to introducing programs for early childhood, including the measurement, evaluation and programming system, which is one of the most famous programs for this category in the United States of America and many other countries.
Inclusive Education
For her part, Ms. Doaa Al-Daridi, Supervisor of the Integration Unit, said that the goal of inclusive education within the diploma aims to enable staff working in educational institutions to learn about the latest and best strategies and practices in inclusive education programs and to provide them with information and supporting strategies in the educational process. This would improve the quality of services provided that support the process of integrating students with disabilities, and follow up on the application of strategies within the educational environment, and participate in developing solutions to the challenges facing trainees in the school environment.
Assistive Technologies
Ms. Rabab Abdel Wahab, Director of the Assistive Technologies Center, pointed out the goal of the program, which is to introduce Assistive Technologies and Universal Design for those interested in the field at the beginner level. At the end of the program, the trainee will learn about the basics of assistive technology services, Universal Design, and the service delivery model.
At the end of the program, the trainee will receive a professional diploma in special education and a field training certificate upon completion, noting that the training fee is 5,250 UAE dirhams.