The main aim of the project is the exchange of good practices and of experience, which should lead to the elaboration and implementation of the effective offer in favour of improving the basic and key skills of the listners participating in the project as well as of other persons, who will use the project’s results and will contribute to the development of the high quality learning offer. The target group for the activities carried out in the framework of this project are adult listeners - persons with visual imapairment, at the age of 50+ as well as the young persons (18-30).There will participate in this project 10 persons from Austria, 10 persons from Belgium and 10 persons from Poland. Due to their visual impairment, each group of 10 persons will be accompanied by 4 guides/assistants during the training courses carried out abroad.It results from the experience and the own studies of the organisations participating in this project, that the visually impaired persons, blind, newly blind and partially sighted have various problems in the field of the basic and key skills. Those persons, deprived of the view sense, wishing to orientate themselves in those fields have to learn special techniques, which will enable them to count, read, write as well as well as to get the skills in the field of the key skills, such as the computer literacy.In the framework of the project, persons representing two different age groups, learn one from each other, they become educators in the fields they know well. Being educators, they become more aware of their strong points and being educated by other listeners, they have the opportunity to fill the gaps in their knowledge and get the new skills in the field of their needs.Usually, the perons who are 50+ have difficulties in the field of the digital competences (computer literacy, smartphone use, as well as on many other digital devices very popular nowadays in the mainstream society) and at the same time, young persons, who did not become autonomous yet or who have been autonomous for a short period of time, very often have problems with the autonomous life, with managing daily living skills (e.g. cooking, cleaning up the house, taking care of children). This project responds to the needs of the visually impaired persons, young adults and those who are 50+, who feel the need and really have the deficiencies in the field of the basic and key competences. In the framework of this project the listeners, in the nice atmosphere, in friendly and accessible environment take part in the life long learning process, in the intergenaration and intercultural exchange.Thanks to the fact, that the project has been carried out in the international partnership, with the use of the blended mobilities (training course in Warsaw, in Viennna, in Liege and 3 national training courses and 3 training courses by skype), the listners are more motivated for learning, the proces sof learning becomes more attractive for them and therefore more effective.The project participants, adult listeners – thanks to the project’s activities related to learning, educating and to the training courses will get new learning habits and after the end of the project they will be able to manage autonomously their intelectual development. Lifelong learning will have a very big value for them. By changing their attitudes, the quality of their lives will change, those persons will become more active in the social ground and will be a part of the meainstream society and it will preserve them from the social exclusion. The project participants will be visibly more confident about themselves, and their social interactions will be of better quality.The activities and the project’s results will be presented in the articles published in the magazines for the blind, produced by the organisations participating in the project in various formats accessible for the blind (braille, large print, electronic format, audio), therefore the information concerning the project will reach many persons with the visual impairement, the members of their families and to other persons interested in the field of the blindness.The information about the project’s activities and results will be given to the European Blind Union. The VIEWS International taking part in this project is an European NGO therefore the info about the project will be widely spread in the hole Europe and beyond and thanks to this fact this project can be an inspiration for the activities for other organisations working for and with blind persons.
The project was carried out from 1st November 2016 to 30th June 2018. It addressed the needs of young and elderly visually impaired who have had deficiencies in basic skills and other key competences. Within the framework of the project, adult people, in a friendly atmosphere and conditions, participated in the lifelong learning process, in intergenerational and intercultural exchange. The main objective of the project was an exchange of good practices and experience leading to the development and implementation of effective strategies for the improvement of basic skills and other key competences of project participants and other persons benefiting from project’s results. It also aimed at improving and extending the offer of high quality learning opportunities. The target group of the project were visually impaired adults at the age of fifty and above and also young people aged 18-30. It was a strategic partnership project carried out by three organizations working for the visually impaired: the Polish Association of the Blind, The Austrian Federation of Blind and Partially Sighted and a Belgian organization Views International. In total, the project involved 10 participants from Austria, 10 participants from Belgium and 10 participants from Poland. On daily basis, these three organizations that participated in the project operate for the benefit of the visually impaired. Their goal is to improve situation of blind and partially sighted in different areas. Because of disability-related problems, project participants were accompanied by sighted guides during 5-day trainings. On average, there were four sighted volunteers for a group of 10 people. Project activities addressed to the visually impaired from different age groups included: - National Trainings in Poland, Belgium and Austria, - Three 5 day trainings that have been carried out in Poland, Belgium and Austria. - During these trainings blind and partially sighted project participants had a range of opportunities to master or learn new basic or key skills. The learning process was complemented with the use of friendly, accessible devices and technologies for the visually impaired (e.g. Braille, tactile cubes.) The project appeared to be a reciprocal learning process for participants from two age groups. Persons aged fifty and above with deficiencies in digital competences (use of computer, smartphone or other electronic devices) had been taught by young participants. In the same project, young participants of the project had an opportunity to learn from elderly friends daily-living skills, including, housework, cooking and folding clothes or taking care of children. In addition to that, project participants shared their experience related to the accessibility of education for persons with disabilities, employment opportunities or accessibility of sport activities and culture for the blind in their countries. Joint international partnership, mobility and organization of trainings in Warsaw, Vienna and Liege, national trainings and workshops conducted over skype; all these have boosted the motivation of project participants to gain knowledge and experience. This meant the more attractive and effective learning process. Participation in the project enabled its beneficiaries to master key and basic skills (counting, reading and writing.) Moreover, training participants gained knowledge of daily-living skills (cleaning, cooking, folding clothes, etc.) and had an opportunity to gain digital competences (how to use a computer and electronic devices.) Essentially, project participants who took part in activities addressed to the learning process, have gained learning habits and are interested in further education and personal development. The essential change of their behavior and attitude has determined quality of their life. Project participants have increased their confidence, are more active in society and are convinced that their life is in their hands. Activities and project results have gained publicity in various accessible publications issued by organizations participating in the project, information on the project gained wide coverage not only in countries participating in the project. Information about the project have been prepared for the European Blind Union. Additionally Views International organization operates in Europe and information about the project and its results have reached wide range of audience. All in all, the project can be an inspiration for different organizations. Our strategic partnership has proven that education for persons with the visual impairment can be more effective, attractive and of better quality for adult learners.