There are two goals of the project: 1st goal: To enhance the professional competences of teachers working in Center IRIS to work with deafblind students. New found-knowledge and experiences will help professionals working in Center IRIS: - to organize adapted learning environment, - understand the needs of deafblind students, - to form individualized programme of work - to prepare trainings for collegues (working in Center IRIS) and parents of deafblind students. 2nd goal: To create an Action plan of educational programme adjusted for deafblind students in Slovenia. Our long-term goal is that deafblind students are recognized as a special group of children with special needs and special educational programme for deafblind students is provided as a part of school system.
Center IRIS is a school for students with special needs (especially visual impairment, also multiple disabilities, authistic disorder) that provides different educational programmes and also programmes to support inclusive education. In the last 10 years the enrolment of students with multiple disabilities (in our school) increased and among them there are also deafblind students. Professionals working in school sometimes identify them, but they come across many challenges, because they do not feel they obtain required knowledge to work with deafblind students. In Slovenia there are no trainings, programmes that would be organized to learn how to work with deafblind students. There is also no professional institution that would provide special programmes for deafblind students and that is why we deciced to apply for the project, to get the knowledge from abroad. Creating liaisons with foreign institutions working with deafblind students was the only chance for us to enhance our competences to work with deafblind.