I had the opportunity to work with the Creekside on Bardstown Assisted-Living and Memory Care facility for my service-learning project this semester. The primary goals I targeted were supporting physical activity, cognitive activity, independence, and reminiscence through specifically designed music activities that the staff could facilitate without the presence of a music professional. I applied Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) to these activities, which gave me hands-on experience implementing these course concepts while also benefitting the community partner. Before beginning the project, I was nervous about whether my activities would be sufficiently creative and engaging; I was excited, though, to be directly supporting a community organization through the project.

Myself

As a result of the service-learning project, I have grown in my overall confidence and resourcefulness working with a community partner and utilizing UDL and SEL concepts. I gained experience with the complete process of collaborating with a community partner; I made initial contact, completed an interview with original questions, and developed three original activities that successively incorporated feedback. I was surprised by my creative activity ideas and my ability to find several applications of inclusive principles within the activities. I found many ways to apply UDL concepts for accessibility, then SEL concepts contributed to more complete activities. Although it took effort to transform my initial ideas into complete activities, I am happy with the result and excited for the residents to enjoy them.

Knowledge and Skills

Something that occurred to me early in the process was my lack of experience designing music activities specifically for someone else to implement. I would not be present to complete my own strengths and needs assessment, musical preference assessment, or to build rapport with the residents myself as I typically do in music therapy settings. My solution was to assess the potential needs of the activity facilitator(s) for activity implementation in addition to the needs of the residents. Both, I realized, would be crucial for the success of the activities. The interview I completed addressed both the needs of the residents (e.g., additional processing time, clear and concise instructions, novel and engaging experiences, and opportunities for physical and cognitive engagement) and the needs of the activity facilitators (e.g., activities that are flexible, uncomplicated, and that require minimal materials). Interestingly, I realized I could rely upon the rapport the facilitators had already established with the residents for the assessment and activity development. The caregivers knew the residents much better than I would myself, and that was not a bad thing.

I also learned much about what UDL concepts can look like when utilized with older adults, whether through providing choices, fostering collaboration, offering alternatives for auditory or visual information, activating background knowledge, and varying the physical methods for response (to name a few techniques!). I am confident these ideas greatly improved the accessibility of the activities I created. I also scratched the surface on applying SEL through social awareness and relationship skills with discussion prompts and team collaboration. I would like to continue exploring how I could apply additional concepts through activities like the ones I created. 

Community Partner

Communication with the Life Enrichment Director was instrumental in designing these activities. She shared valuable insights during our interview that set the course for the project and provided feedback for each activity that shaped the following one. Feedback addressed the pacing of the activities, the appropriateness of content (based on the preferences of the residents), and the likelihood of success during implementation. I assumed the activities would be implemented with the residents during the project timeframe, but it was clear that the Life Enrichment Director could anticipate the chances of success based on her extensive experience with them.

I am glad I provided a list of activity options to choose from between two of the activities; this provided the community partner a direct opportunity to contribute to activity design. It may have been helpful to provide options for all three activities, however, to maximize their input. After creating each activity, I provided ample time for them to respond with feedback before each course feedback deadline. I do think I could have requested more specific feedback, though, or asked questions about certain aspects. As I mentioned in another blog, I would have liked to have found creative ways to incorporate music into other daily activities. It may have been helpful to ask for more information about the routines of the residents to plan this type of activity.

Values

This project and an extracurricular observation this semester have contributed to a clearer understanding of what accessibility does and does not look like. Even an activity such as music bingo, which appears to be simple on the surface, presents many potential accessibility challenges for older adults with and without dementia. Proactively considering the challenges that may occur during activity implementation can minimize or prevent anxiety or confusion in the moment. Activity participants might unnecessarily believe they themselves are the problem instead of the activity design, which could have been avoided by simply enlarging the font size on a sheet of paper, for example. As I have learned, inaccessibility is easy to miss, so I must closely examine the accessibility of activities or interventions in advance to avoid excluding participants later.

Action

Some of my most important takeaways from this experience involve navigating interactions with the community partner and the importance of designing accessible and personalized activities. Although the communication I did have with the community partner was invaluable, specific and increased communication may have provided additional guidelines for my activity design. I also realized the importance of relying upon the already-established rapport between the community partner and the target population for designing personalized activities. Each personalized touch can create a more inclusive activity by gathering the attention of those involved.

Moving forward, I would like to apply what I have learned to future activities and interventions I create. Accessibility is a nonnegotiable aspect of session planning that I am now considering in music therapy experiences. I also hope to find opportunities to collaborate with other community partners in the future, so this was a valuable hands-on experience in establishing and navigating this relationship. 

Outcomes and Conclusion

Although I still have much to learn about the relationships between accessibility, inclusion, and disability, it is a lifelong process that I have made significant progress towards this semester. The service-learning project applied course concepts, including UDL and SEL, to a hands-on learning experience that benefitted the community partner as well as me. I will now see underlying accessibility issues more plainly thanks to this experience, such as the potential challenges of music bingo I previously described. As I continue to grow as a professional, I am hopeful that I will contribute to making the music therapy profession more accessible for all.