TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Katarzyna Kowalska
The training course was part of Diverse Visions: a three-stage project that aimed at exploring the potential of digital storytelling (Berkeley Method) as a method for supporting young people who are neurodivergent. The main goal was to create a network of youth workers who are enthusiastic about creative methodologies and ready to discover how digital means of expression and modern technologies can be used for giving voice to young people on the autism spectrum and/or with ADHD who are often excluded, demotivated, and deprived of the right to express themselves freely.
The introductory training in Denmark was focused on providing participants with background knowledge on how to work with neurodivergent youth and to teach them the method of digital storytelling so that they can implement workshops using it back in their home communities (which was done in the second stage of the project)
The training participants were youth workers, teachers, and representatives of community centers from Bulgaria, Greece, Poland, Türkiye, Portugal, Spain, and Denmark. All of them worked with neurodivergent youth and their main need was to gain practical tools and methodologies for supporting the young people they work with, especially as for providing them with space for self-expression and self-advocacy through films.
The training was organized by an international team consisting of trainers from Denmark, Poland, and Portugal.
During the training we used methods based on non-formal education with a lot of focus for providing participants with space for self-reflection and creative work. As the goal was for participating youth workers to deeply understand digital storytelling as a method, each of them went through a process of creating their own film. Seeing the method from a perspective of a participant and then undergoing an intensive facilitator training that included methodological analysis of digital storytelling allowed participants to be fully prepare for facilitating their own digital storytelling workshops back home.
The main result was participants gaining more skills and knowledge related to digital storytelling and working with neurodivergent youth. After the training in Denmark participants went back home and did workshops in their own communities, and from their feedback we know that those activities were successful and that participating youth workers were indeed ready to use digital storytelling as part of their regular work practice.
As for more tangible outcomes, some of the participants of the training course agreed to publish the films they made, which can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaAsVHY2Avc&list=PLRCTRbZYzOWPe6TkGbiPiCGR78ILtneii
Upstream Stories also produced a post-project publication on digital storytelling and working with neurodivergent youth:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/17FLjMCveGqb4KNdwahNmTICBmwVctBnC/view?usp=drive_link
As one of the core team members I was responsible for developing and delivering the training content. Sessions I conducted included:
- introduction to digital storytelling (Berkeley Method)
- narrative theories + how to write a script
- creative exercises for finding the story
- voice recording
- creating the visuals
- film editing
I also contributed to the creation of the post-project publication
I was a co-trainer on this project, and it was an amazing experience. The participants were deeply involved in all the activities and gained many important skills to share with their youth. Since they had to go through the process themselves, they had the opportunity not only to understand it in theory but also to put it into practice. This is essential for a facilitator using these kinds of methods. On the other hand, they also had the opportunity to reflect on themselves and explore feelings that were previously unexplored. The magic of this training is that everyone can decide how deep they want to go in their exploration, always having a trainer to help them process what they are discovering and create unique stories that can transform them and serve as inspiration. As someone who has done this method twice as a participant and many more times as a trainer, I can say it is a truly intense yet deeply motivating approach.
I have worked with Katarzyna Kowalska for more than 10 years. She is an amazing, highly accomplished trainer who is deeply dedicated to non-formal education. She was the one who taught me how to be a trainer, and over the years, I have had the privilege of growing alongside her as a professional. She has encouraged, guided, and motivated me every step of the way.
Katarzyna approaches non-formal education with great rigor and commitment. She is a creative trainer with an extensive toolkit, making her a highly knowledgeable professional who truly knows how to adapt to any group while creating an inclusive learning environment. She is truly one of the best people I have worked with in these and other methods, and I am certain she would be an invaluable addition to any training.