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Behaviour Support Training for Parents of Children with Down Syndrome: Perceptions, Feedback, and Attitudes
Abstract
T
he British University in Dubai (BUiD) is an accredited nonprofit research based university
that is dedicated to postgraduate degrees. The university was established in 2003. It is
heavily involved in the community and supports the development of at risk children and
their families. The Al Jalila Foundation approached the BUiD to partner in a high-quality
community development project called “Ta’alouf” which means “harmony” in Arabic.
This article focuses on one of the training courses that commenced on October 25, 2014 and
finished on November 29, 2014. A four-hour session was conducted every Saturday for six
weeks. All participants were Arabs from different Emirates. Their children belonged to different
special needs centres. Thirty participants were interviewed, and all these interviews were
recorded, transcribed in Arabic, and then translated into English. To ensure the validity of the
translation, an outsider back-translated some of these English translations. Participants also wrote
a final report in which they mentioned the most beneficial lessons they learned from the course.
The participants were selected on the basis of having a special needs child (Down
syndrome), and priority was given to Emirati nationals. The participants’ educational background
varied from high school certificate holders to postgraduates. At the end of the course, all
participants submitted a portfolio that included homework, done over the six weeks on an
interval basis, and a final written report. This portfolio was one of the graduation requirements
set by both the sponsor and the university.