VR 4 Mobility

Providing mobility training for the visually impaired enables their participation in societal activities. However, the availability of such training across Europe is not consistent, as there may be a lack of instructors, training resources, or proper regulation.

The aim of the Erasmus+ project is to establish a uniform training approach and expand internationally available opportunities for mobility training, utilizing virtual reality technology. Virtual reality complements physical training by allowing users to practice the same routes at home through virtual glasses, thereby increasing their confidence and familiarity with the routes. The project targets visually impaired individuals and their mobility instructors, providing them with curriculum development, guidance, and training in virtual reality usage. The activities are tested with end-users to ensure their effectiveness and usability.

Further information: Timo Repo, timo.repo@valteri.fi

EU 4 Inclusive Teaching developing national resource centers in Albania

Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK) has collaborated closely with the Albanian public sector, schools and third sector within the framework of the ‘EU 4 Inclusive Teaching’ project. A joint Training-of-the-Trainer -programme, designed and delivered together with TAMK and Tampere University (Faculty of Education and Culture), has provided pedagogical support to almost 300 Albanian teachers.

In this collaboration, Valteri Centre for Learning and Consulting has a consulting role in transforming Albanian special schools towards national resource centers. The path towards transformation requires new knowledge and skills, such as raising staff capacity in methods suited for inclusive education (e.g. sign language) and establishing of two-way dialogue between the special schools’ working groups and the Albanian Ministry of Education and Sports, which is finally responsible for the endorsement and resourcing of the developed action plan.

The project runs from February 2022 until December 2024

You can read more about the project on TAMK's website.

Further information: Kimmo Hurtig, kimmo.hurtig@valteri.fi 

Transnational Professional Upgrading Project (TRAP UP)

TRAP UP is an innovation and professional skills development project granted by the Erasmus + program. For 3 years The School for the Deaf Ljubljana, Slovenia, State Development Center, Hearing and Communication, Germany, Valteri-koulu Onerva, Finland and Center for Communication and Welfare Technology, Denmark, will be working together to develop a number of new materials and concepts for use in the teaching of professionals working with and students who are deaf and hard of hearing. The project also aims to share knowledge and best practice transnationally, within a highly specialized area with few actors. The goal is ultimately to create the best school life possible for deaf and hard of hearing children.

For the partner schools the transnational project will provoke the opportunity to gain new knowledge, new materials and new inspiration in our work with deaf and hard of hearing children as well as in our consultant assistance to inclusion schools across the countries. This is very important, as we as a highly specialized offer have difficulty maintaining and further developing ourselves within our own national borders. In a larger perspective, the project will give us a new professional network and new partners for future projects.

The project runs from September 2020 - August 2023 and ends with an open conference in all participating countries.

For more information: Miia Kareisto, miia.kareisto@valteri.fi

Problematic School Absence – Improving Systems and Tools

An Erasmus KA2 project (2020-2022) with four Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland) aims to describe the legislation, national guidelines, and different examples from these countries to tackle the problematic school absences. Based on these, the project aims to share different models to follow up the problematic school absences. As a conclusion of this project, we will represent proposals based on our findings in the project and literature to tackle the problematic school absences through coherent, national level guidelines.

For more information: Iines Palmu, iines.palmu@valteri.fi

We learn to live in a digital world

Project period 9/2017 - 8/2020, Valteri Mäntykangas

The goal of the project is to develop technology-focused knowledge and skills of teaching personnel in special pedagogy by sharing good practices and through innovation. The project aims at developing skills in data and communications technology among teaching personnel and the utilisation of these skills in the shared projects of the students.
The aim of the project is to develop and share good practices supported by technology when moving on to the second level.

Further information: Jukka Vetoniemi, Valteri Mäntykangas, jukka.vetoniemi@valteri.fi

Strengthening skills in the use of visual information and technology to support communication of pupils with multiple needs

Project period 2/2017 - 12/2019, Valteri Ruskis and Valteri Skilla

The goal of the project is to develop the knowledge and skills of personnel on learning by visually impaired pupils with multiple needs, and rehabilitation that supports learning and the new technology of communication. The project focuses on learning by visually impaired children with multiple needs (incl. processing of visual information in the brain) and on methods of rehabilitation that support it, as well as learning about new technical solutions for gaze guided communications and boosting skills and knowledge.

Further information: Marketta Karvonen, Valteri Ruskis, marketta.karvonen@valteri.fi

ERASMUS + KA1 mobility projects at Valteri

'Approaches and practices for an inclusive school'

Project period 2016 – 2018, Valteri Onerva

The aim of this mobility project is to develop the quality and operating approaches of Valteri Onerva's consulting service operations. Particular focus areas include information and communication technology as well as inclusive support. Job shadowing activities enable teams to familiarise themselves with the resource centre activities in different countries. The aim of the participation in training is to develop the uses of information and communication technology in a multiprofessional way to serve the needs of pupils in need of extensive support.

Further information: Kristiina Pitkänen, Valteri Onerva, kristiina.pitkanen@valteri.fi

BRAILLE – The status of reading and writing in Braille in pre-primary and basic education

Project period 5/2016 – 1/2018, Valteri Onerva

The project explores the status of reading and writing in Braille among blind pre-primary and basic education aged pupils in some European Countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Austria, Estonia). A questionnaire is used to investigate the guidance provided on the learning technique to Braille users and the availability of relevant materials. The aim is to examine the influence of modern technology on the development and use of Braille reading and writing skills. The project is coordinated by the Danish Association of the Blind and funded by the European Blind Union (EBU) and partly by the International Council of Education and Rehabilitation of people with visual impairment (ICEVI).

 

The ”JNCL and Education” project; Juvenile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis and Education

Project period 2014 – 2017, Valteri Onerva as a partner

This multinational Erasmus + KA2 partnership project is focused on issues related to children and young people with JNCL. The aim is to produce a website and a book with the theme 'life-long learning and high-quality life'. The target group of the project consists of individuals with JNCL, the people in their networks, teaching staff and other professionals in the field. The project is coordinated by Statped, Norway. Valteri Onerva is one of the project's partners. The actors of the project include learning and consulting centres and parents' councils in the field of visual impairment in different countries. The project will be presented in Finland at a seminar held in June 2017.

Further information Marja-Leena Forssas, Valteri Onerva, marja-leena.forssas@valteri.fi

Communicate and participate.

The aim of the Communicate & Participate - Empowerment of Children through AAC project is to help pupils express themselves, participate in the life in the local community and interact with one another. The project supports teachers and other staff at schools in using AAC methods by developing and sharing concrete communication products.

Project website: http://www.conductive-aac.eu/ (Ruskis)

eSPECIALLY MOBILE

An Erasmus+ project whose purpose is to provide staff with opportunities to learn to utilise information and communication technology more efficiently in learning and rehabilitation. International cooperation and networking are used to seek new and innovative ways for developing activities. (Mikael)

'Inclusive teaching with multi-professional skills'

Project period 8/2016 – 7/2018, Valteri Tervaväylä

The aim of the mobility project is to support the up-to-date skills of the multi-professional staff of Valteri Tervaväylä in national and international development work. The target groups include the rehabilitation, counselling and consultation work supporting teaching and learning as well as the management of educational institutions. The aim of the project is to obtain the latest international know-how for developing intensive special needs education and pedagogical rehabilitation.

Further information: Kimmo Hurtig, Valteri Tervaväylä, kimmo.hurtig@valteri.fi

’Being included  with uniqueness’

Project period 8/2016 – 8/2018, Valteri Mäntykangas

The aim of the mobility project is to increase the competence of staff and bring new perspectives to preventing school drop-outs and exclusion. The project aims to seek new and innovative ways to work with pupils as well as to increase the capability of staff to work internationally, e.g. by enhancing language skills and networking.

Further information: Jukka Vetoniemi, Valteri Mäntykangas, jukka.vetoniemi@valteri.fi

ERASMUS + KA2 partnership projects at Valteri

’All Aboard!’ – Sharing of skills and innovative solutions to support inclusive school attendance

6/2016 – 4/2019, Valteri Tervaväylä

The aim of the development project coordinated by Valteri is to promote the sharing of skills between resource centres and provision of training for staff as well as to produce tried and tested inclusive practices available for everyone. The project partners include the centres for learning and consulting GO!, Belgium; National Star, England; and Statped, Norway. All of the centres play a role in supporting inclusive school attendance diversely, from basic education to vocational education and training. The project will produce a professional development module that the project countries can use as an Erasmus+ KA1 training in the EU. The project will end with an international seminar held in Finland at the spring of 2019. See the project's website here.

Further information: Kristiina Pitkänen, Valteri Onerva, kristiina.pitkanen@valteri.fi