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An estimated 93 million children worldwide live with disabilities (UNICEF data 2021). Like all children, children with disabilities have ambitions and dreams for their futures. Like all children, they need quality education to develop their skills and realize their full potential. Yet, children with disabilities are often overlooked in policymaking, limiting their access to education and their ability to participate in social, economic and political life. Worldwide, these children are among the most likely to be out of school. They face persistent barriers to education stemming from discrimination, stigma and the routine failure of decision makers to incorporate disability in school services. Disability is the single most serious barrier to education across the globe. Inclusion in education means placing children with disabilities into a general education with necessary support to make sure the student is successful in general education. One key is that children are “based” in general education classrooms. By being based in general education students with disabilities are viewed as members rather than visitors to the class, and as a result they are more likely to be accepted and befriended by peers. With this project the inclusive education in Bulgaria and Turkey was extended as an approach to allow sutiable delivery of education, that supports and welcomes diversity amongst all learners including those with disabilities, learning difficulties, talants etc. It is a concept of effective schools where every child has a place to study and teachers become facilitators of learning rather than providers of information. With this project we have trained more than 150 teachers in Bulgaria and Turkey as “inclusive education ambassadors”. In this role we involved teachers, trainers, psychologists, resource tutors, who support the development, implementation and mainstreaming of successful inclusive education practices. Our approach followed the universal design of learning, which enabled accessible provision of education to all students with and without disabilities and learning difficulties. As such those ambassadors gained professional skills to work towards integrative schools and do active outreach to open up schools as institutions towards inclusive education practices. We have equipped them with necessarily knowledge and skills in managing diversity and we have enabled them to be able to suggest strategies to promote inclusive practices at mainstream schools. At the end of the project the participated ambassadors have the ability to create a learning community in which everyone – staff, students, parents are involved and valued for their input-to promote the inclusion and integration of all students no matter what their origin, previous experience, abilities and social skills are. In addition, they acquired ability to support teachers and schools staff in dealing with diversified groups of learners. All 20 participating schools during piloting process shared their experience and good practices focusing on abilities rather than disabilities. They improved their individual support system by introducing the good practice of other countries (like Sticordi measures from Belgium) and therefore reduced the risk of failure and preventing students drop outs. These teachers, trainers, psychologists, resource tutors learnt how to make effective and motivating study materials adapted to the individual needs of every student which led to a greater success and also learnt how to use the project and its intellectual outputs as a resource in long-term development of the mainstream schools. They have raise their motivation to recognize and support individual needs of students, they have developed new professional skills, competences and inclusive education strategies and were trained as inclusive education ambassadors which will be maintained beyond the project lifetime as a sustainability action. Among key outcomes of this project is also the empowerment of participants in the sense of their capability to identify techniques and approaches that are suitable for them in everyday life and their work. As final project results, we have developed the following Intellectual outputs in EN, BG, TR & NL languages:IO1: Principles, beliefs and role of the inclusive education ambassadors guideExtra outputs:Annex I: CONSOLIDATED SURVEY RESULTSAnnex II: DISTANCE INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN THE CONTEXT OF COVID-19 (exclusive additional result prepared as support to teacher during COVID-19 pandemic) IO2: Handbook “How to strengthen the implementation of the inclusive education at mainstream schools?” IO3: Guide for setting up and delivery of cross-school peer support IO4: Mobile app for blended learning and cross-school networking and communication They are freely accessible via:- https://inclusive-ambassadors.eu/elearning- Google Play - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.inclusiveambassadors.mobile
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