Virtual Teams: Press Release 2
Author: Chara Pilidou
Upskilling youth organizations for the inclusion of people with ASD
Participation in community and social activities is beneficial for a young person’s health and development, including those living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Yet so far, inclusion projects have been primarily focused on youth with physical disabilities and little attention is directed to youth with ASD and their inclusion in youth initiatives in their communities. In order to tackle this issue, there is a high need for the upskilling of local and community youth organizations in order for them to be able to include youth with ASD in their initiatives and match their services with this present and future need to support the psychosocial development and independence of people with ASD.
The project aims at providing youth workers and youth organizations with a new, innovative and accessible learning opportunity on ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). More specifically, the project’s objectives are:
– To support the participation of ASD youth in youth organizations’ activities
-To increase the attractiveness and accessibility of youth work for ASD youth
– To provide the necessary training methodology and tools to youth workers in order to include ASD youth in their work
– To provide organizational support to youth organizations to include ASD youth in their initiatives by upskilling their administrative and management staff
– To provide youth training opportunities adjusted to ASD needs
Would you like to see an innovative programme for the elderly?
The e-Protect project consortium held a meeting on April 1, 2022. Apart from having incredible energy and positivity, the consortium met to give a brief update on the tasks that have been already done and planned for the upcoming period in the project.
GRETA – 3rd Newsletter
Το έργο GRETA είναι ένα καινοτόμο εκπαιδευτικό πρόγραμμα που χρηματοδοτείται από την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση (Erasmus+). Και ναι, το όνομα του έργου επιλέχθηκε ως φόρος τιμής στην Greta Thunberg, τη σουηδή έφηβη που ενέπνευσε ένα διεθνές κίνημα για την καταπολέμηση της κλιματικής αλλαγής. Το έργο διαρκεί 24 μήνες και επικεντρώνεται σε θέματα κλιματικής αλλαγής. Η συντονιστική ομάδα του έργου GRETA αναπτύσσει πρωτότυπο εκπαιδευτικό υλικό που εφαρμόζεται στην σχολική τάξη από δασκάλους και μαθητές. Βρείτε περισσότερα στο πιο κάτω σύνδεσμο:
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NEAR_ Newly Arrived Migrants – 2nd Newsletter
We are proud to be working on NEAR, an important project on the integration of newly arrived migrants, helping them settle in their host country. Read the latest news about the project, and what we are planning next.
An alternative way of promoting intercultural education
How would you feel if you could teach and promote intercultural education in the classroom and in non-formal learning environments through a board game and other digital tools?
For the purposes of our project “Game to EMbrace INtercultural education” – GEM IN, we have designed a board game and other supplementary tools that teachers can use to support intercultural education, promote social inclusion, intercultural dialogue and active citizenship, through the promotion of European values.
The board game has already been trialled by teachers, as we offered training which provided them with the knowledge and skills needed for the effective pilot application of the board game, in order to achieve the learning outcomes in their classrooms. During the training, the teachers got acquainted with the “learning through playing” methodology, the introductory activities that they could do with their students and the GEM-IN board game.
The primary goal of intercultural education is to cultivate respect for all, to build a sense of belonging and to guide students in becoming responsible and active global citizens. Intercultural education aims to empower students to take an active role in addressing global challenges and becoming active contributors to a more peaceful, tolerant, inclusive and secure world.
In our schools, we recognise the need for more flexible and inclusive learning methods, as the student population becomes more and more diverse. Education is required to cultivate a school environment which will meet the needs and requirements of all groups, social and cultural and will lead to the creative interaction of all students. In addition, it must prepare students as citizens of a multicultural society, who will respect diversity and at the same time maintain their cultural identity.
The purpose of the project “Game to EMbrace INtercultural education” – GEM IN is to support intercultural education at school and in non-formal youth environments as vehicle to foster social inclusion, cross-cultural dialogue and active citizenship by promoting European values.
More information about the digital tools and board game can be found on the project’s website here, in the Digital Archive or on the project’s page on Facebook.
How to make the upskilling process additive with game design concepts
According to Skills Panorama, Cedefop survey (Nov.2019), ‘ICT is a general-purpose technology, and so changes and disruptions in the economy can have significant influence on the future skill demands for the professionals.
There will be 1.6 million ICT professional jobs that will need to be filled between 2018 and 2030. It wasn’t long ago that coding was seen by many as an odd hobby for people tinkering with computers in their basements. But over the past several years, coding has progressed from a hobby to a critical career skill. Coding and programming have emerged as some of the most desirable skills for employers. On the other hand, one of the most important objectives in education is to prepare students for their future careers. Although Coding is fast becoming one of the most important subjects taught in schools, there is still a lot to be done all over Europe.
Computational thinking and the ability to understand how the computer executes the programs are necessary 21st‐century skills that can drastically influence the future labour market. Schools have a responsibility to provide their students with all the tools and skills they need to succeed in the modern workplace. Knowing this, the project’s partnership has agreed on the importance of enhancing ‘coding’ in general education, involving youngsters in the process as early as possible. To adapt to changes in the landscape of the jobs market, schools should adjust their curriculum and incorporate coding.
This project aims to cover the benefits of students learning to code in school, as well as offer tools, approaches, methodologies and tips to teachers on teaching coding effectively.
CReative rESilienT leARning communiTies meeting COVID challenges
The Covid-19 pandemic brought unexpected and new challenges for local communities in almost every field of their lives. Specifically, because of lockdown restrictions and measures, cultural activities needed to be rethought. The aim of CRESTART is to map the cultural changes observed before and after the Covid-19 pandemic in certain dimensions of the institutional and national culture of the participating countries. The project will develop and share a participatory and user-friendly toolkit for strengthening the creativity and innovativeness of local communities on how to successfully tackle similar challenges and reduce cultural risks.