TOY - Trainers Online for Youth
This is a reference for Hristescu Costin Adrian
The training aimed at:
- creating a positive attitude towards working with persons with visual impairments and confidence to do this;
- opening the participants to adapt their regular activities so that they are accessible to persons with visual impairment;
- developing the skills needed to act as sighted guide for a person with visual impairments;
- developing the skills needed to adapt the working materials, working methods and ways of delivering information so that they will ensure full participation of persons with visual impairments;
The group consisted in 4 participants from each of the following countries:
- Bulgaria;
- Cyprus;
- Greece;
- Macedonia;
- Romania;
The course was divided into different modules, which approached the following thematic:
1. Introduction & Teambuilding:
It aimed at developing the necessary group dynamics for implementing the training.
It included: Introduction, Ice-breakers, Group building activities, Expressing expectations, fears, contributions, a presentation of Erasmus+, defining common rules;
2. Opening up to working with persons with visual impairments:
It aimed at ensuring that participants will have a positive attitude towards working with persons with visual impairments and will be confident to do this
It included: Discovering the terminology used for defining aspects related to visual impairments, Guided visualisations, methods for reflection and changing attitudes related to disability like: “The story of Helen Keller”, “The cards we’re dealt”, “4 quadrants activity”, etc.
3. Engaging participants to take social action for a more inclusive world:
It aimed at ensuring that participants are open to adapt their regular activities so that they are accessible to persons with visual impairments.
It included activities that helped participants define their potential contribution to creating a more inclusive world and made them more committed to this, like: “Personal self-assessment of inclusive behaviour”, “Life statues”, “Carousel brainstorming”, “I can, we can, they can”, “3, 2, 1 closing activity”
4. Creating an accessible space for people with visual impairments:
It aimed at:
- Raising awareness on the needs of people with disabilities in terms of accessibility and of working environment.
- Developing the skills and acquiring the knowledge needed for being an assisting person for a person with visual impairments.
- Developing the skills and acquiring the knowledge needed for adapting the working materials, working methods and ways of delivering information so that they will ensure full participation of persons with visual impairments.
It included activities connected to: thinking outside the box (“World as we know it”), Guiding techniques, Verbal and written communication addressing people with visual impairments, other aspects concerning accessibility (of venues and activities, assistive technologies, etc.)
5. Getting involved
It aimed at:
- Assessing the effectiveness and quality of the support offered to people with disabilities, including own attitude.
- Further developing the skills and acquiring the knowledge needed for being an assisting person for a person with visual impairments.
- Further developing the skills and acquiring the knowledge needed for adapting the working materials, working methods and ways of delivering information so that they will ensure full participation of persons with visual impairments.
Participants had the chance to test end experience their newly gained competencies by preparing an inter-cultural presentation that was accessible for the persons with visual impairments, which was later presented to the local Blind’s association from Arad. More than 20 members of the association were present to the event.
Also, participants tested some of the methods from the compendium and offered feedback on them. Good practice examples from each country were presented and several transnational initiatives that could involve VIPs were drafted.
6. Close-up & evaluation
It aimed at assessing the learning outcomes of the training course
It included: final reflections, presentation of the Youth pass form, filling in the form using the learning diary, final evaluation, final meta-reflection.
In several activities, some of the participants were wearing blindfolds that were offered to each participant, so that they can experience how it is to be a participant with visual impairments and how your needs and expectations change.
During the assessment of the training, it was revealed that:
O1. Participants had a more positive attitude towards working with persons with visual impairments and confident to do this.
- More than 95% of the participants declared that they are more open to work with persons with visual impairments.
- Among the most important learning outcomes, participants described:
* Being able to “put themselves in the other’s shoes”,
* Being more open-minded about working / interacting with persons with visual impairments.
- Participants were very open to organize activities with the members of the blind’s association and even declared that this was one of the best activities
O2. Participants were more open to adapt their regular activities so that they are accessible to persons with visual impairments.
- More than 95% of the participants declared that they are more open to work with persons with visual impairments.
- Participants managed to organize activities with the members of the blind’s association and even declared that this was one of the best activities.
- Participants organized activities that addressed, persons with visual impairments and did this in a very natural way.
O3. Participants were more aware of the needs of people with disabilities in terms of accessibility and of working environment.
- In terms of learning outcomes, participants described:
* Being aware of the different assistive technologies that exist, which make participation to social and professional life more accessible,
* Being aware of the different needs that persons with visual impairments have,
* Being able to “put themselves in the other’s shoes”.
- Participants appreciated a lot the activities in which they were blindfolded, especially from the learning perspective.
- The inter-cultural activities done with the Blind’s association of Arad were highly appreciated not only by the participants but also by the beneficiaries, proving that the participants managed to take into account the needs of persons with visual impairments when preparing the task.
O4. Participants were able to act as assisting person for a person with visual impairments;
- “Orientation and mobility – skills on guiding a person with visual impairments” was one of the most appreciated methods:
- Participants successfully managed to guide their colleagues in the city, on a path that included several obstacles, stairs, climbs, etc. and also during the activities in which part of them were blindfolded;
O5. Participants were able to adapt their working materials, working methods and ways of delivering information so that they will ensure full participation of persons with visual impairments;
- The intercultural activities done with the Blind’s association of Arad were highly appreciated not only by the participants but also by the beneficiaries. For organizing them, the participants created various presentation materials using cardboard, clay, plaster, etc., to make them tactile.
- Participants managed to facilitate activities in which part of the target group acted as visually impaired.
O6. Participants were able to assess the effectiveness and quality of the support offered to people with disabilities, including staff’s attitude;
- The evaluation methods used, including the written form, the self-evaluations, the learning diary and daily reflections truly helped participants be more aware on their attitude towards the persons with visual impairments and also the changes that they need to do in order to improve their work;
- I was the lead trainer and I developed half of the training programme;