Sekolah Empati IIUM Workshop closes programme with empathy

By Irdina Zainudin

GOMBAK, 25 October 2023: In collaboration with a non-governmental organization, Empati, the Secretariat of Psychology (PSYCTA) of AbdulHamid AbuSulayman Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences (AHAS KIRKHS) held the workshop œSekolah Empati IIUM on 21 October 2023 (Saturday) as a subevent and as the closing programme for their World Mental Health Week 2023 event. The event World Mental Health Week is usually held annually.

Participants and committees of Sekolah Empati IIUM Workshop waiting for the program to start

The programme manager of the event, Huriyyah Hamiemah binti Md Tajudin, highlighted that the workshop is to increase the empathy of students.

œEmpathy is a psychological construct which helps others to understand other peoples feelings or experiences, one of the speakers of the workshop, the Head of the IIUM Department of Psychology, Dr. Jusmawati binti Fauzaman stated.

Moreover, Hamiemah also mentioned, œThe empathy skill is a good tool for them (the participants) to understand those with mental health issues.

Furthermore, Dr. Jusmawati informed the participants that being compassionate was part of being empathetic. œTry to not only understand but also as try to feel how they (those suffering from mental health conditions) are feeling, she said. She also emphasized the importance of understanding empathy and the inculcation of such characteristics in oneself.

Dr. Jusmawati also highlighted the act of listening. œTo learn the act of empathy, you need to have the listening skill. You need to listen to understand and then you will be able to understand the other person â”€ and then you will be able to feel empathy.

The workshop continued with ice-breaking sessions, as well as some activities which were led by the other speakers of the workshop, the founder of the NGO Empati, Nursyahida binti Zulkarnain, like Stigma Games, where the participants were instructed to confess any stigmas they had faced, and Empathy Circle, where the participants were encouraged to talk about three things: a turning point in their life, how much they love themselves and three things they were grateful for.

Participants during some of the activities held

The activities themselves encouraged numerous students to talk about things that burdened them, from any issues to any questions they wanted to ask concerning themselves or about others around them.

Nursyahida asked participants to embrace themselves as the workshop continued, after finishing another sharing session among the participants.

When asked about the theme of the workshop, especially when compared to the typical workshop that usually focuses on dealing with mental health or detecting mental health problems, Hamiemah stated, œThroughout the World Mental Health Week 2023 (held at HS square), we plastered an infographic poster regarding these topics where students can check for themselves.

She further added that the workshop was focusing more on equipping students with skills so that they could help anyone close to them who needed it.

Currently, NGO Empati is on a road tour to establish empathy schools in all, if not most of the higher educational institutions to not only spread the word but also to help others.***