“Giving Voice to Unheard Children”, a community engagement initiative by the NUMS Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, was envisioned to develop the communication skill sets of children who have been rescued from slums, bonded labor, and drug gangs. To make the program effective, alongside students learning sessions, teachers’ training was also made a major component to enable them better communicate with the young neglected souls.

In this regard, a two-day Teachers Training Workshop was organized on 3rd & 4th of August, 2023 by NUMS Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences in collaboration with the Child Protection Bureau, Rawalpindi (CPWR). This teachers training workshop aimed at equipping teachers of CPWR with pedagogical communication skills to better deal and communicate with destitute, neglected, abused, and runaway children of their institute.

The program was conceived and supervised by Ms. Salma Naz Khattak, Lecturer of English from NUMS Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences. The teachers training module was designed to assist the teachers by empowering them with skills that can help them to effectively navigate the teaching challenges they encounter while dealing with the disadvantaged children at the institution. The teachers training workshop primarily focused on teaching practices and styles to foster effective communication and creativity in the classroom having a more stimulative and conducive learning environment. Fifteen teachers from CPWR attended the program held at NUMS PWD campus.

On first day, after the ice breaker, the session on importance of creativity in classroom was conducted, where the participating teachers shared their experiences of how they try to incorporate creativity in their daily teaching lessons. In the second session they shared their reflection on current teaching practices and styles. Ms. Salma shared in the 3rd session why understanding communication skills is important in today’s rapidly changing world and the associated challenges in adopting creativity in less resourceful classrooms. The final session of the first day of the training workshop was about the power of visual stimuli and the importance of questioning, reasoning, and debating.

The second day commenced with communication in teaching excellence and the session expounded on how to design and deliver creative lessons that fosters effective communication followed by the last session on tips for building classroom connectedness, and verbal & nonverbal immediacy. The trainer also emphasized on how to use classroom talks to stimulate students’ creative thinking.

This initiative was appreciated by Dean faculty of Social Sciences Prof Dr. Azam Chaudhary who applauded the efforts of Ms. Salma Naz Khattak. The program commemorated in a closing ceremony on the final day (4th of Aug, 2023), where Dr. Abdul Qadar HOD DSBS, acknowledged the efforts of training resources personnel executing the event and distributed certificates. District officer Ali Abid Naqvi of the CPWR also attended the program and applauded the thought and precision through which the program was executed under the umbrella of NUMS.

National Interest encompasses the overall state’s goal which primarily includes the survival of the state and its people, maintaining a stable economic and political system, and ensuring territorial integrity. In its student seminar series, the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities conducted a session to deliberate on "Professional Socialization and National Interest of Pakistan" held on January 12, under the Students' Seminar Series by the Students of FSSH with an aim to create awareness among the youth. The session targeted UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG No 4) Quality Education and SDG No 17 Partnership for the Goals. Ms. Salma Ayaz (Lecturer of English, DSBS) supervised and moderated the session.

Mr. Assad Ullah Khan, Senior Research Associate in the Centre of Aerospace and Security Studies (CASS), Islamabad was invited as the Guest speaker to enlighten the audience on the topic. His professional experience and research interest are in National security and counter-terrorism. The distinguished guests of the session were Dean SSH, Dr. Azam Chaudhary, and the Head of the Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences Dr. Arif Mehmood alongside other faculty members of the department. Dr Erum Monis, Deputy Director of Quality Assurance also joined the session as a special guest. The salient takeaways from the activity-based interactive seminar included: -

  (a) National interest broadly encompasses a country's overall ideological and territorial integrity and the welfare of its citizens.  Maintaining stable economic and strong political systems is paramount to achieve these interests. However, it was highlighted that to ensure national interests, the role of Professional socialization is equally pivotal, though seldom realized. Mr. Assadullah  Khan discussed the importance of professional socialization, its stages, the relationship between professional socialization and national interests, and the ways universities can play their role in great depth.

  (b) He mentioned how being a tiny yet an important part of the overall national level interest, students can contribute to the growth and development of the nation. He elaborated on the necessity to grow professionally in recent times.

The students from the Departments of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Psychology, enthusiastically participated in the discussion and also presented a video showing their understanding and opinions about the national interest of Pakistan. The students gave several suggestions on how to improve the national interests to move forward as an inclusive nation. They also highlighted in the videos the need to rethink the national economic policies and political agenda. Moreover, the exploitation of national interests by the masses due to its vague aspects was also acknowledged and debated. The guest speaker appreciated the students’ efforts and addressed the questions put forward by the audience.

In the end, Dr. Azam presented the worthy guest with the NUMS souvenir, and a commemorative group photo was taken.

As 2023 has arrived, it is time for the very batch of ‘Social Science of Health’ to graduate. To bid them farewell and recall the journey, a Farewell Lunch was organized by the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences. The event was held at La Sorte Naval Anchorage Club, Islamabad on January 3rd, 2023.

The event was honored by Dr. Arif Mahmud (HoD. Social and Behavioral Sciences) and Dr. Shazia Khalid (HoD. Psychology) and Dr. Azam Chaudhry (Dean Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities) joined as the Chief Guest of the event. Under the supervision of Ms. Salma Ayaz (Lecturer English, DSBS) an event was programmed, along with the lunch, that was well enjoyed both by faculty as well as the students.

The event was hosted by Mariyam Amir and Ain-ul-Fatima (SSH-VII), and Noreen Iqbal (SSH-VI) delivered a speech to formally begin the event. It was followed by a song performance by Ali Haider and Zareena Zulfiqar (SSH-VII) and Enaab Syed (SSH-VII) presented a self-written poem for her graduating fellows. A comic skit and song dedication to teachers were presented by the host semesters of DSBS which humorously reflected the four-year journey of students at NUMS. Titles were given by the junior semester to their senior graduating fellows. Maaz Mughal (SSH-VIII) from the graduating semester took the stage to word his feelings on this happy yet melancholic eve and wished for the fellows to stay in touch even after graduating. A group of eighth-semester students also presented their respect and regard to the faculty members in the form of titles and song dedication. The farewell speech on the behalf of graduating semester was presented by Warda Waheed (SSH-VIII) that extended gratitude to the faculty members for their academic guidance. She appraised the cherished journey at NUMS and highlighted the significance of the degree program, and also thanked the BS psychology students for joining the get-together.

After the program ended, lunch was served, and the students and faculty savored the food well. Dr. Arif Mahmud in his remarks congratulated both the hosts as well as the guest semesters for presenting a memorable show and recalled the memories of the NUMS’ first batch. He also wished the graduating batch success in their future endeavors. Dr. Azam Chaudhary gave his concluding remarks and wished the students success in their future endeavors. He reminisced about the emotional attachment, besides the academic one, with students of the first batch and exhibited his anticipation that the graduating student will accomplish big as the degree has equipped them with unique insights and skills. Furthermore, he appreciated at length the efforts of Ms. Salma Ayaz and the Event management team in organizing a diligent and delightful event. The event concluded as group photos and momentous pictures were taken to preserve the sentiments. The graduation of the first batch of the Social Science of Health is not only a source of pride for the students but the department also feels honored for this accomplishment.

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH), NUMS has conducted faculty talk under Faculty Development and Training Program. Ms. Sara Shafiq, Lecturer Anthropology from Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences has shared her views about the topic. She reflected on how learning about Metaliteracy prepares you to effectively participate in a connected world. Metaliteracy advances reflective and empowered learning in collaborative communities. The audience were enlightened about how to creatively and ethically produce and share information. This talk highlighted the importance of learning about Metaliteracy, how to become an informed content creator and a responsible contributor to information environments.

The presenter explained about Metaliteracy as empowering because it encourages individuals to be reflective and to take charge of their learning. This approach is relevant to anyone who wants to be an informed consumer of information and responsible participant in a connected world. The importance of understanding of copyright and open licensing through the Creative Commons was also highlighted. Another interesting highlight was Digital Storytelling as a creative form of information production. Metaliteracy supports learners in a variety of professional fields and academic disciplines to become effective contributors to collaborative communities. Being a metaliterate learner includes self-reflection and critical thinking while successfully adapting to new forms of technology.

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH), NUMS has conducted its seventh session of faculty talks under Faculty Training and Development Program. The aim of the program is to provide a platform to the faculty to bring different areas of research and critical thinking under discussion for having a fruitful insight from other faculties and department. These discussions besides training faculty to deal with broad spectrum of academics also enriches them with cross disciplinary input.

The session titled ‘Social Stratification in Pakistani English Textbooks’ held on May 19, 2022 at NUMS, PWD campus. Ms. Misbah Obaid, Lecturer English from Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences has shared her views about the topic. She reflected on how two different social strata are being formulated as a result of teaching two different sets of English textbooks in Pakistani Schools at Primary and Secondary level. The speaker referred back to her study “Representation of Class system through English Textbooks in Pakistan” which analyzed books from two different publishers, one was local; Punjab Text Book Board (PTB) and other was foreign publisher; Marshall Cavendish Education (MCE) Language Arts books. Both set of books were reflecting entirely different cultures , PTB book reflects the local culture, while MCE book reflects the foreign culture. Bifurcating and teaching these books in different schools not combining the content and hence creating barrier to cultural understanding is leading our society towards class system in Pakistan. PTB books are usually taught at government schools while MCE books are taught in private schools. Therefore, two class of people and social strata are created unknowingly in society, one totally focused on local culture and other more exposed to foreign culture.

The Event was attended by faculty of Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Department of Psychology, NUMS. All the participants carried out a thorough discussion on linguistic and cultural elements reflected in textbooks and ways a specific group of students has been localized rather than globalized. Dr. Abdul Qadir, Assistant Professor Anthropology specifically took keen interest in methodological ways to analyze this cultural division in textbooks. The discussion was summed up on suggestions by all faculty members on how to minimize this cultural barrier with in society at the level of curriculum development and policy making. Dr. Arif Mahmood (Organizer of the event/HOD, DSBS) and Dr. Shazia Khalid (HOD, DPS) appreciated the thought provoking talk and acknowledged the cultural/social challenges it brings to the society. The event was concluded on a thanking note by the speaker and organizer. This talk particularly refers to SDG4 of Quality Education and 4.5 of Elimination all discrimination in education. 

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Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH), NUMS conducted a faculty talk under Faculty Development and Training Program. Dr. Yasir Mehmood, Assistant Professor (Economics) from the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences introduced the statistical component of IBM SPSS Statistics. This training aims to introduce the fundamentals of SPSS and related features, in particular how to enter the raw data, perform different descriptive analyses, interpretations, and report the results. This included a broad range of techniques for exploring and summarizing data, as well as investigating and testing relationships. Faculty members were guided with different case studies/examples in which they would use these techniques and interpret the findings.

Natural calamities and accidents usually take place unexpectedly and sometimes even pose a threat to people’s lives. If people present on the site have first-aid knowledge and skills, they will respond to the emergency appropriately and in time, which is crucial to minimize the frequency of accidental induced fatalities and injuries.  

Being part of a Medical University, it poses a civic responsibility on NUMSIANS to be trained in basic first aid techniques. Apropos, Students of the Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences organized First-Aid Training Session by the Rescue 1122 team on 9th June 2022 from 1400-1600 hrs under the guidance of Ms. Salma Ayaz (Lecturer English DSBS). The event was joined by the students and the faculty members of different departments of NUMS. The distinguished guest of the event was Dr. Arif Mehmood, Head of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences. The session aimed at providing the students with the basic knowledge and skills to save themselves or any other individual in case of an emergency and targeted SDG 3 “Good Health and Well-being”.

The training was extended by Mr. Emmad Wasim Shah (Master Trainer/ Community Safety Instructor, PR and Training Wing, Rescue 1122 Headquarters, Rawalpindi) and his team who brought with them the dummies through which proper demonstrations were illustrated. The training began with the display of emergency numbers so that the appropriate authority can be reached out in an emergency situation. The concept of Golden Hour was highlighted as the critical duration during which if appropriate medical treatment is provided, an individual can be saved.

The team gave professional training in detail on how a layman can take care of a patient in an emergency situation along with elaborating on the way to tackle choking situations, especially in children. Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) was performed on the dummy to tell the audience regarding giving compressions followed by the recovery position to make sure the patient vomits out preventing the choking condition. The team gave real-life examples to show how people must react to such situations, especially in the critical cases; where nowadays is; the patient is moaning in pain and shaken up facing a near-death experience and spectators are busy filming it. This is a serious issue where uploading a story or status became superior to a human’s life. Being responsible citizens, it is our duty to educate ourselves and our families and friends because “if anyone saved a life it would be as if he saved the life of the whole humanity.” Quran 5:32

After the successful commencement of the training, the event concluded with the note that a follow-up session will be arranged to cover a wider range of responses to emergency situations. The audience felt engaged and found the experience very utilitarian. At the end, Dr. Arif Mahmood presented the worthy guests with the NUMS Souvenir and a commemorative photo was taken.

The third session of Students’ Seminar Series, held on June 8^th, 2022 provided the students of Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences to present The Research Paper they authored. The event was organized under the guidance of Ms. Salma Ayaz (Lecturer English- DSBS). The invitation to the event was open to all the students and faculty of NUMS. The event was honored by Dr. Aisha Mohyuddin, Dean Multi-Disciplinary Studies (MDS), and Dr. Shazia Khalid, the Head of the Department of Psychology by their presence alongside other worthy faculty members from different departments.

The title of the research paper was “Efficacy Analysis of Different Treatment Groups, Age, and Sex on the Recovery Rate of COVID-19 Patients in Twin Cities of Pakistan”. This research study was conducted as a collaboration between the faculty and students of Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Department of Biological Sciences. The authors of the paper include Hasnain Khalid, Mahnoor Chaudhry, Madiha Ilyas, Maaz Mughal from Semester VII of DSBS, and Fizza Maryam from DBS. It was supervised by Dr. Muhammad Faheem, Dr. Amna Ishtiaq, and Dr. Babar Jamal from DBS faculty. 

The Event proceeded as the host Mr. Hasnain Khalid from Semester VII of DSBS welcomed the worthy audience followed by the recitation of the Holy Quran. Dr. Muhammad Faheem, who supervised the research, was than invited to briefly apprise the audience about the idea of said research and the motive behind it. It was followed by the research presentation by Ms. Madiha Ilyas from Semester VII of DSBS. The research study aimed to examine the association between the state of recovery of patients of different age groups and sex. It also examined the relationship between different treatment groups and the state of recovery. Lastly, it assessed the odds of recovery of patients corresponding to various treatment groups.

The presentation was followed by the Q/A session, in which students as well as the faculty members participated actively. Lastly a group photo was taken to commemorate the day and students were highly appreciated for their hard work and distinction.