OBJECTIVES ACHIEVED According to the results of the piloting process developed by the different team members, we have achieved our core project aim at supporting teachers and schools towards the implementation of digital and inclusive learning environments, improving readiness to achieve a successful organization and realization of regular teaching of lesson into digital content during the COVID-19 pandemic school year and beyond, enabling successful inclusive education for all, including students with disabilities and students with learning difficulties, as well as students with poor income, The project contributed to the conceptualisation of professional inclusive digital and remote teaching competences in the teaching profession. We provided educators - teachers, special education teachers and aspiring teachers - a new didactic model for digital and inclusive education: DIPCE Model (see IO1). We also updated the inclusive teachers' profile, by enhancing digital and inclusive competences, taking into account the specific requirements needed for educational implementation in COVID-19 pandemic circumstances and beyond, whenever remote teaching/learning is needed or desired. Our second handbook (IO2) has proved to be a clear and useful guide for transferring a course online in an inclusive manner. Practical and effective implementation of a digital and inclusive learning curriculum has been granted by providing digital resources and materials. A searchable database with digital resources has been created and is available on our website ( see IO4), and we also created and shared our own materials ( videos and infographics available at IO3). ACHIEVED RESULTS We have produced four intellectual outputs (IOs) that granted the achievement of our project aim and objectives. IO1: New didactic model for embedding digital curriculum resources into inclusive teachers’ pedagogical practice - This output describes a model for embedding digital resources into teachers’ pedagogical practice. IO2: Handbook “Steps for transferring a course online in an inclusive manner“ - With this output, we trained teachers about the relevance of different digital curriculum resources, which might be useful in order to transfer the regular classroom teaching to a digital lesson. IO3: Set of instructive graphs (online, mobile and printable) and explanatory animated videos to support the implementation of inclusive remote education - This allowed the dissemination of our project outcomes IO1/IO2 in an attractive manner, using colorful engaging infographics, and explanatory videos. IO4: Supportive portal with searchable database with regards to inclusive remote teaching practices, trajectories, inclusive learning environments and accessible open source repositories (training material, software, etc.) - The portal and the LMS platform host a searchable database with regards to inclusive digital teaching practices/trajectories, digital learning environments and digital open source repositories (training material, software, etc.) At the end of the project we organized a multiplier event We shared our outcomes (the intellectual outputs (IOs) we created during the two project years (manuals, videos, infographics, inclusive practices database,…), and we also shared the results of the piloting process ( You can see the event at this site) https://www.youtube.com/live/xSugYXzAW-g?si=nAA_If4rbO7Z5jbh Piloting process results reveal that the core impact has been on raising awareness among the target groups. In this same study, all IOs have been assessed as clearly written and organized and of great utility.
Our project aimed at supporting teachers and schools towards the implementation of digital education readiness to achieve a successful organisation and realisation of the school year during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. This was especially related to the rise in usage of remote teaching/learning practices and other digital tools. Enabling successful inclusive education for all, including students with disabilities and students with learning difficulties, as well as students with poor income was at the core of our project. To achieve this, we created new supporting material for the teachers for an effective EU educational awareness campaign, such as our new didactic model, our handbook, our searchable database with resources, and our videos and infographics. As such, teachers will be more prepared to face the educational challenges caused by a (COVID-19) pandemic whereby remote teaching becomes the only option.
Teacher education on the one hand focuses on the aspects of digital technologies that are generic to the teaching profession. Of equal importance though is that teacher education also must be sensitive to the more specific disciplinary practices and features characterizing each individual school subject and in particular those practices that can address the challenges faced in a COVID-19 rocked educational system across Europe. This is the more important when we consider those most affected from the pandemic impact on schooling: children with special needs that get lost in the new teaching reality (support teachers not present in person, different daily structure, etc.) as well as those that do not have the means to participate in online teaching (lack of hardware, software). There is an obvious need for digital and inclusive pedagogical competences of educators especially in the countries tackled in this project - Spain, Bulgaria, Greece and Belgium. Our project therefore aimed to design and enact inclusive learning activities, where the scientific disciplines, the professional disciplines (pedagogy and subject didactics), and inclusive practices add up to a coherent whole.