Good Practice Catalogue

The ENTELIS+ project aims at developing and implementing innovative methods and practices to foster inclusive education and promote common values, as well as enhancing the digital skills and competences of digitally excluded groups, particularly persons with disabilities of all ages, through strategic public and private partnerships. The ENTELIS+ project aims at having an impact on three levels: 1) Raising awareness about the importance of accessibility as an enabler for inclusive learning and teaching, 2) Developing the digital skills of persons with disabilities and older persons so that they can participate in the digital society, 3) Enhancing the capacity of the key actors in charge of the design and implementation of facilitating frameworks. Partners in this project are: European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD), AIAS Bologna Onlus, Funka Nu AB, Johannes Kepler Universitat Linz, European University Cyprus, Association for the Advancement of the Assistive Technology in Europe (AAATE), ATEMPO, Saint John of God Community Services clg., Vocational Training Center MARGARITA, Association of European Border Regions

In 2021, the organization FAB (Verein zur Förderung von Arbeit und Beschäftigung - Association for the Promotion of Work and Employment) launched the project "Digitale Wissenswerkstatt", which is a part of "Produktionsschule Villach". The latter is a project in which young adults (with psychological disorders, developmental delay or learning difficulties) are trained and prepared for the open labour market. In the module "digitale Wissenswerkstatt", the participants gain competences regarding digitalization and digital transformation of everyone´s daily life and of the labour market. The learning content is adequate to the learning ability of the young adults. During the lockdowns, the learners received worksheets (these were analog in the beginning and digital later). During the next lockdowns, there was use of digital tools, such as learning games and other applications (existing ones). The project is divided in six content-groups: Digital transformation, basics of digitalization, media competences, basic internet competences, internet methods expertise and internet social expertise.

AIAS Bologna onlus is an NGO that, among others, supports the vocational development of persons with disabilities. This organization provides for the training of employees who act as specialised operators. These operators can, by appointment, intervene remotely (by telephone or video call) or physically (by visiting people's homes) to accompany and support users in use of the web, social media, and other digital tools. Therefore, people with disabilities and frailties are supported, but also trained, so that they are allowed to become active citizens of the digital society. This practice was crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine.

In 2022, the organization FAB (Verein zur Förderung von Arbeit und Beschäftigung), meaning Association for the Promotion of Work and Employment, launched the project DIGI-Coaches. Through internal organisation monitoring, it was concluded that "staff members" (educators) and enablers lack in development of digital skills and have to be adequately trained, in order to be able to train persons with disabilities. The project aims at the special training of FAB employees who work as coaches, with the intention to overcome digital barriers and develop target group-specific solutions. These coaches will support the employees of the FAB in their daily requirements when dealing with digital media. This approach should thus prevent the danger of digital exclusion for the latter.

This Erasmus+ project was launched in 2021 and is still in development. Its’ scope is the enhancement of life experiences for adults with special learning needs, and also of their trainers’ and parents’, through supported decision-making (SDM). The digital tools that will be developed during the project, aim at enhancing the persons’ with disabilities autonomy and quality of life. Also, training resources for the professionals of the services to the people with disabilities will be available, during the course of the project. The overall scope is to make possible the change of paradigm marked by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the European Disability Strategy 2010-2020, which highlights Education and Training as a key area of action.

The Daugavpils Stropu Basic School-Development Center published a report with brief info on special education programs in Latvia, informs on kinds of learning disabilities, learning support measures, assistance in Mathematics of the 5th-6th grade, practical examples of teaching basic mathematical concepts for children with different learning disabilities. Visual support, practical work, active participation, meaningful tasks, acceptable teaching materials, interactive games.

Vocational Training Center MARGARITA operates with (among others) two workshops related with the use of technology. The clerks Workshop is the one with the oldest history. Its’ scope is the training of people with intellectual disabilities in the use of mobile technologies, using also the manuals developed by the workshop and lately by BYOD project. In addition, tangible office tools are being used, so that the beneficiaries obtain the skills of clerk employees. In the Educational Technology Workshop, people with intellectual disabilities are trained in the use of technologies, awareness raising about people with disabilities' rights to accessibility, how to transform documents, material, and websites in order to make them accessible for all, inclusive design and inclusion principles. The aim is to prepare them for their digital and social inclusion. In specific, the beneficiaries are trained in two levels; in order to familiarize themselves and use technology as a means to communicate, educate and inform themselves, but also in order to boost their digital skills in order to be more prepared for the labour market.

The consortium of this Erasmus+ project consists of the following partners: Polish Association for Persons with Intellectual Disability (Poland), Vocational Training Center MARGARITA (Greece), Harran University (Turkey), Association for Activism, Education, Culture and Art Civil Center “AktivUm” (North Macedonia), Fundació Espurna (Spain). The partners attest that persons with intellectual disabilities can be employed in the community, along with persons without disabilities, and earn competitive wages. The project aims at making sure that these persons are supported to have the resources to seek, obtain, and be successful in this community employment, by being able e.g., to create a “catchy" CV or meet other job-related training and searching activities. Also, the project aimed at providing training material for best practices, for staff of employment and school-to-work transition programs. Training persons with intellectual disability in the use of mobile technologies and informing employers on the usefulness of these technologies, when hiring a person with intellectual disability, is also a scope of BYOD project.

Year of initiation: 2021. European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD), The European Network of Social Integration Enterprises (ENSIE), Arbeit Plus, JKU - Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, Lichtwerk, Fundacion ONCE, Fundacion Coremsa, RES - Réseau d’Entreprises Sociales, NASOR - National Association of the Socially Responsible Employers, Excellia, ACT group, Faculty of Law in Zagreb University, Fédérations française des Entreprises d'Insertion, AFPA, Rise Romania, ADV Fundatia Alaturi de Voi, MARGARITA vtc, EV ZIN, SENT, Cene Štupar, AIAS Bologna onlus, Idee In Rete, Social Entrepreneurship Association of Latvia, Samaritan Association of Latvia, De Omslag, ROC van Amsterdam, Stowarzyszenie Współpracy Regionalnej, Izba Rzemieślnicza Małej i Średniej Przedsiębiorczości w Katowicach, European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises, Scuola Centrale Formazione.    

Application collection.