Fostering inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities in early childhood education and care

Тhe EMBRACE project emanates from the need for support continuous professional development of ECEC staff and leaders in working with children with intellectual disabilities, and in building partne...

EMBRACE addressed the call priority “2021, Round 1”. The overall objective of EMBRACE was to contribute to the enhancement of the quality of early childhood education and care and promote the inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities. In order to reach its overall objective, the project set the following more specific objectives: •To develop inclusive values and attitudes among ECEC staff and strengthen their knowledge and capacities to accommodate the needs of children with intellectual disabilities.•To equip ECEC staff and leaders with the needed tools, resources and knowledge to foster a culture of inclusion through collaborating with colleagues, children, parents and community members. •To raise awareness among children, parents and the general public on the importance of inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities in ECEC settings. •To increase the visibility of children with intellectual disabilities, deconstruct stereotypes and fight discrimination through overcoming barriers to early years education.

Тhe EMBRACE project emanates from the need for support continuous professional development of ECEC staff and leaders in working with children with intellectual disabilities, and in building partnerships and collaborations among themselves and with children, parents and community members. The main project target groups were staff working in ECEC settings, including educational staff, care staff and auxiliary staff/assistants, as well as leaders/heads of ECEC settings, i.e. nurseries and kindergartens. Ultimately, the project wanted to benefit preschool children with intellectual disabilities, such as autism, Down's syndrome, fragile X syndrome, Williams syndrome, Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

The project produced the four following Project Results: R1. Mapping the Terrain - collection of data from the desk and field research on the needs of ECEC staff in Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, North Macedonia and Poland edited in the form of the Transnational Report, The report included Policy Recommendations that can be implemented in various countries, by combining and analyzing the information from both investigations (research & interviews).The Report was translated to all partner languages (English, Polish, Greek and Macedonian) and uploaded on the project website https://project-embrace.eu/pr1-transnational-report/. R2. E-learning course - the course covering four modules that equip ECEC professionals with the necessary knowledge, skills, and attitudes to foster social inclusion in kindergartens: the core philosophy of inclusive education, introduction to EU quality framework for early childhood education and care, understanding cognitive and social development of children with intellectual disabilities and Key principles in working with children with intellectual disabilities in ECEC settings. The course was piloted in five partner countries. The course is available in four languages (English, Greek, Macedonian and Polish) on project website: https://project-embrace.eu/elearning-course/ The findings and recommendations led to elaboration of the Library with resources relating to inclusion, ECEC, intellectual disabilities policy in partner countries (Poland, Greece, Cyprus, Belgium and North Macedonia) available on the project website: https://project-embrace.eu/library-with-resources/. R3. Fostering a Culture of Inclusion Handbook - a handbook of good practices for ECEC staff and leaders on fostering inclusive environments for children with intellectual disabilities, divided in four modules: Engaging Children, Engaging Parents, Engaging Staff, Engaging Community. The good practices described in the Handbook were piloted by five project partners in 36 kindergartens and nurseries in Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, North Macedonia and Poland. The overview of pilots and Final version of the Handbook available in four languages (English, Greek, Polish and Macedonian) on the website: https://project-embrace.eu/pr3/. R4. Awareness-raising Toolkit: Inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities in early childhood education and care - a toolkit for ECEC settings with useful and effective resources for raising awareness of the importance of inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities in early childhood education and care. It includes a descrption of a promotional campaign on incusivity and three sets of tool (posters, brochures and videos) for two audiences: children at pre-school age and adults (both with and without intellectual disabilities). The tools were piloted in 22 kindergartens, schools/and education institutions in all partner countries (Poland, Cyprus, Greece, North Macedonia, and Belgium). The Final version of toolkit with all ready-to-use tools is available in four languages (English, Greek, Macedonian and Polish) at the Project website: https://project-embrace.eu/pr4/. Through these results the EMBRACE project laid a strong foundation for promoting inclusive education in early childhood settings. The positive feedback from participants and the key recommendations provided valuable insights for further development and outreach. By continuing to build upon this success and incorporating participant feedback, the EMBRACE project can leave a lasting impact on early childhood education in the participating countries and beyond. It is through the collective efforts of dedicated educators, stakeholders, and institutions that we can create an inclusive society where every child can thrive and reach their full potential.