Speak Up For Yourself

Enhancing Communication for Students with Special Educational Needs

🗓 Project Duration: 2021–2023
🤝 Partners: EIVA (Romania), Institution of special vocational education and training (E.E.E.E.K.), üçel, Paidea

🌐 Website: speakupyourself.altervista.org

What Was Speak Up Yourself?

Speak Up Yourself was an Erasmus+ project aimed at improving the teaching skills of educators and enhancing communication for students with cognitive and non-verbalizing difficulties. The project focused on creating practical tools to support teachers and parents, thereby improving the integration opportunities for these students into social and professional life.

Objectives

Enhance Teaching Skills: Provide educators with effective strategies and resources to support students with special educational needs.
Develop Supportive Tools: Create resources that facilitate better communication for non-verbalizing students.
Promote Integration: Improve the social and professional integration prospects for students with communication challenges.

Development of "My special Diary"

A compilation of best practices designed to assist educators in addressing the needs of students with cognitive and non-verbalizing difficulties.

Creation of the "SpeakUp Handbook"

A comprehensive guide encompassing the latest theories and methodologies in special education, serving as a valuable resource for teachers and support staff.

Launch of the "Speak Up For Yourself" App

An application utilizing Makaton language, designed for use by teachers and parents in daily interactions. The app facilitates basic communication, fostering a supportive environment for both educators and students.

Impact

Improved Educational Practices: Educators gained access to innovative tools and methodologies, enhancing their ability to support students with special educational needs.
Enhanced Communication: The project’s tools enabled better interaction between educators, parents, and students, contributing to more effective learning experiences.
Increased Integration Opportunities: By improving communication skills, students with non-verbalizing difficulties experienced greater inclusion in social and professional contexts.

About the partners

EIVA Association

EIVA is a NON-profit association from Romania having the purpose of developing and implementing social, cultural, and educational projects in order to contribute to the development of social responsibility in the community where the association has been active for more than 10 years. Our association is involved in education and international cooperation, focusing on the issues and challenges of young people and adult learners who do not benefit from equal chances. website: eiva.ro

Institution of special vocational education and training (E.E.E.E.K.)

The Institution of special vocational education and training (E.E.E.E.K.) Ioannina, is a Public School of Special Education. It grants a Level 2 degree with professional rights and provides professional training in the fields : Gardening-Agronomy-Ceramics-Autonomous Living. The laboratories of our school are fully equipped with the necessary tools and machines. In addition to laboratory courses, the program also includes general education courses provided by the curriculum. Some of them are aesthetic education, language, mathematics, music, gymnastics. In addition, individualized teaching programs are structured according to the particular educational needs of the students. The school also has: Department of Social Service, Department of psychological support, Department of speech therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, department of Nursing Service, Department of auxiliary support.

Üçel

Our school is located in İnegöl ,Bursa. It is the only special educational institution. The institution currently has 28 expert personnel, 16 assistant and administrative personnel, and an average of 520 students. Our school has 124 students with mild, moderate, severe, and severe intellectual disabilities and autism. The facility consists of 2 buildings with: classrooms, therapy rooms, a common room, a canteen, a library and apartments for children. We offer our students a wide range of specialist classes: speech therapy, physical rehabilitation, sensory integration, revalidation, sensory art, music therapy, choreotherapy, classes with typhoid and surdo educators. We are very happy to share our knowledge and experience with other teachers who work with children with special educational needs. We have been organising family education support training on special needs education for 10 years

Paidea

Paidea’s main objectives can be summarised in 3 key words: innovation, education and planning. Social and technological changes have affected students’ approaches to learning, which highlights the need to find innovative methodologies/tools to increase pupils’ engagement and motivation. It focuses on finding alternative solutions to the main challenges schools have to face.

Speak Up Yourself concluded successfully, leaving a legacy of improved educational resources and enhanced communication strategies for students with special educational needs. The project’s outputs continue to serve as valuable tools for educators and parents alike.

For more information and access to project materials, visit the official website: speakupyourself.altervista.org