Counsellor - Special Education

Ms. Zamzam is a compassionate and dedicated professional with more than 8 years of experience in the field of special education and inclusion. She has worked with a diverse group of students with varied needs ranging from emotional difficulties leading to anxiety, low self-esteem, Autism, Learning Difficulties/Disabilities, Attention difficulties and Non-compliant behaviour.
She has worked closely with each student providing individualized support and encouragement they require. She is passionate about supporting young children and genuinely believes in the capacity of all to be successful. She is of the opinion that collaboration and open communication between parents, teachers and the department is key to addressing the needs of students, as well as boost the success of each student both inside and outside the classroom.
She has a master’s degree in psychology and has bachelor’s degree in Education. She holds an MOE license as “Special needs specialist”. She is also a certified Mental-health first aider from The Lighthouse Centre for Wellbeing, Dubai. Her years of experience have taught her the value of patience and encouragement in the special education classroom. She believes that love and encouragement can bring about a change in the most difficult situations be it academic or emotional.

You can contact Ms. Zamzam – School SENDCo for any Personal Learning support queries or concerns. @ zamzam.shah@diyafahschool.com or call 04 2671115 ext. 237

Elenora Dehnugar is a motivated, creative, and enthusiastic educator with over 7 years of experience. Her valuable experience in teaching students with ASD, ADHD, Down syndrome, and learning difficulties has allowed her to appreciate and better understand the nature of the difficulties that children and young adults face at home, school, and in the social system, and how these interact to impact learning and behaviour. She sees inclusion as a process of reducing impediments to the pupils' general growth of determination.

She holds master's degrees in English, Counselling, and Applied Psychology. She has also completed training courses in ABA and Montessori education. She thinks it is crucial to give pupils constructive feedback and encouragement because it helps them become more self-assured, intrinsically motivated, and disciplined. Her use of positive reinforcement, individual differences, thematic learning, and instructional methodologies intends to assist students learn in a way that is both practical and open to creative interpretation.

ROSHANI NADEEKA UTHTHAMASEALEN

She is an energetic, meticulous, and committed Special Education teacher (B.Ed. in Special Education)with a sheer dedication for supporting young learners with love, empathy, care in their education journey. Her tasks entail teaching students with cognitive, physical, emotional and behaviour difficulties. With her 14 years of teaching expertise, she has acquired skills in IEPs, Classroom managements, Organizing and Mentoring etc. She thrives on collaborating with teachers, parents, and care givers to ensure student-centric learning holistic experiences. She also enjoys “walking the talk” by pursuing proactive professional development to refine and mould her competences in her career and keeps up to date with trends and developments in Special Education.

NILIMA OHOL

She is a dedicated and passionate educator, whose goal is to promote her student’s self-esteem and to empower them to use their strengths to the best of their ability.

Now, as a special educator, her goal is to make her students aware that they are valuable, vital, and unique individuals.

Having been a member of the Al Diyafah family for almost 26 years, first as a teacher then  Head of Year and now in addition, a Special Educator, she is very familiar with our school’s vision and mission and the expectations we have for our students. As a seasoned educator, she understands the ways in which students develop and how their learning is enhanced by a collaboration between the family and school . She is of the belief that All educators have the same goal--the best possible future for each and every student and she firmly believes that every child is gifted. They just unwrap their packages at different times.

Gifted & Talented

We also meet the unique educational needs of students through our gifted and talented services. We recognize that learners thrive best in an environment that challenges and nurtures individual strength. Some learners have academic skills, cognitive abilities, leadership abilities and creative talents that differ in degree and dimension from their peers; The CAT4 online assessment is administered to identify the academically gifted students. We challenge our gifted & talented students through our acceleration & enrichment programme. This includes subject acceleration & opportunities to lead the literacy, sports, music etc. clubs in school, ASDAN, ADHS GATE Program (Gifted and Talented Enrichment Programs). They represent the school in various events & competitions such as ADPIQ, Dubai Scholars Cup, write for the school newsletter, concert scripts and more. Students are encouraged to sign up for the Massive Open Online Courses and take additional IGCSE subjects.

SNEHA CHELAT

Ms Sneha Chelat is special educator and G&T coordinator with a postgraduate degree in  Physics and Special Education. She is a dedicated, resourceful and goal-driven professional with a solid commitment to the social, academic growth and development of every child. She has a total of 7 years’ experience in the field. She is committed to creating a classroom atmosphere that is stimulating and encouraging to students and she also has the aptitude to remain flexible, ensuring that every child's learning styles and abilities are addressed.

She plays an active role in identification and implementing programs for probable Gifted and Talented Students. She coordinates the various programmes offered by ADHS to the students who may probably fall under the gifted and talented umbrella by understanding their strengths and weakness.