Two days’ workshop on Harnessing Play for Developmental Stimulation and Intervention concludes in  Jammu University

Jammu, August 26-The valedictory function of Two days’ workshop on “Harnessing Play for Developmental Stimulation, Intervention for Children with Developmental Delays and For Enhancing Emotional Well-Being” was held in the University of Jammu, Jammu. The Workshop was jointly organized by the Department of Home Science, University of Jammu, Jammu and  National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD), GOI, New Delhi.

 Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Guest  Prof. Rajnikant, Dean Research Studies, University of Jammu, lauded the efforts of Department of Home Science and NIPCCD for organizing a very timely and thoughtful workshop for the students.  He emphasized the importance of play  and  traditional games, the joint family system, all of which play an important role in removing stress.  He said that the values learnt during play and interactions  with peers and siblings leads  to the holistic development of children. Further he added that no doubt the  technology has its positive outcomes yet  it has  also lead to the  individualistic and materialistic attitudes among the children . There is a need to bring back the traditional value system for bright future of our country, he concluded.

Ms. Harvinder Kour, Mission Director, ICPS was the Special Guest on the occasion, and she presided over the Valedictory function. She praised the valuable outcome of the workshop that  was the “Happiness” derived from fulfillment of objectives. Further she introduced Mission Vatsalya and focused on human development as primary resource for fulfilling its objectives. She also deliberated on the vocational avenue for the students of the Department, in Mission Vatsalya.

The Chief Resource Person, Ms. Parul Srivastav in her address emphasized upon the assessment of disorders, disabilities, and developmental delays as a composite process that should bring out the deficits and strengths of the children. She said that Play-based assessments make the environment non-threatening and unfold the child’s best. Children need spaces where they feel seen, valued, heard, and nurtured. She talked about the special abilities of the students of Human Development in the fields related to the children, especially Mission Vatsalya and Mission Poshan.

            Earlier, Prof. Neeru Sharma, Department of Home Science, welcomed the Guests and the participants.

 Prof. Samridhi Arora, Head, Department of Home Science, in her brief report highlighted that the workshop was conceptualized since we all share a common interest in unlocking the potential of play in promoting  holistic development in children and  the main aim of the workshop was to bridge the learning gap between knowledge and actual skills required for working in the field of Human Development/Child Development. She informed  that the workshop was attended by almost 40 participants from Department of Home Science, University of Jammu that included faculty members, teachers of Surabhi Nursery School and Day Care Centre, scholars, and students.

Earlier during the day, two sessions of the workshop were held. The first  session of the day was on Play for developmental and clinical assessment through group exercises on creating developmental profiles and the last session was on Play for achieving therapeutic goals through demonstration of therapeutic activities, where developmental abilities related to the participant’s general responsiveness, participation and cooperation were analyzed through clinical assessment. Play, Role Play, Case Studies, Group Sessions, and experience sharing were used for emphasizing the therapeutic ability of play and its value in human development.

Few of the participants also presented the feedback of the workshop.     

 workshop centered on the foundational stage as focused by NEP with aim skill training for upgradation of knowledge, information and capacity building, thereby opening many vocational avenues for the students of Human Development in the areas of  Early Childhood Care and Education, Supportive Educational Interventions Counsellors, Speech and Language Therapists, Cognitive Behavior Therapists, Emotional Counselors,  Play Therapists  and so on. Feedback was given by the participants.

The session ended with a formal vote of thanks by Prof. Shashi Manhas.

The program was efficiently organized and conducted by Dr. Charu Mohan, Ms. Anu Choudhary, Dr. Priyanka Sharma and the scholars and non-teaching staff of the department of Home Science.