LINK is a KA2 Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership project coordinated by ELA with the aim of allowing Adults with intellectual disabilities aged 19-24 to develop their digital and employability skills, actively participate in the society and enter the job market.
 
The pandemic context let inequalities in education emerge: now it’s clear that there is the need of a more flexible and inclusive learning path and the importance of being digitally competent must be seen both as a right and a necessity.
This project aims to avoid the risk for the target group to be excluded from the job market and support schools, adult educator institutions and disability and care centers offering them more structured learning opportunities.

Project Overview

Project info

Action: Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership for Innovation - KA220
Project code: 2021-1-IT02-KA220-ADU-000029478
Duration: 2022 – 2024

Themes addressed

Social inclusion, Innovative Education,​ Upskilling adult learners, Developing digital skills, Developing employability skills, Adult education

Partners of the project

Agrupamento de Escolas de Anadia (PT),
Education Centre of Rokiskis Municipality (LT),
CEPA Teresa Enríquez (ES),
Maria’s World Foundation (BG)
​In order to reach the main objective of the project, the partnership will create and develop 2 Results specifically tailored to the target group and their families, the adult educators working with low skilled adult students, supporting them in the education field and in  the transition to the job market.

R1: LINK Blended Adult Education Course on digital and employability skills

LINK course is a 6-module course on digital and employability skills tailored to the needs of adults with intellectual disabilities aged 19-24 that have finished secondary education but didn’t manage to find a job. The content will be based on the needs analysis conducted by the partnership and it will be based on the game-based and digital pedagogy. It will be blended, with 90 hours of face-to-face instruction and 120 hours of distance learning.

R2: LINK handbook on digital and gamified learning activities for YAwBCD

The Handbook will be based on the concrete experiences of partners and associated partners who implemented the LINK Adult education course. LINK handbook will be structured as a practical tool enabling adult educators to easily integrate in their existing courses digital activities and tools, new technologies, game mechanics and game-based digital apps. It will serve as well as a supporting reference to implement the LINK course or to reuse and adapt it to be totally or partially embedded in another existing curriculum (both in adult education or in a different sector)

What's going on in the project?



​​Training with Associated Partners

On the 19th April we held the online Training for Associated Partners in which we presented the project and discussed about it with some local cooperatives such as “Il Mulino da Seta” and “Atelier”, working in the field of transition to the labour market for people with disabilities. A draft of the Curriculum has been presented during the meeting together with the first pages of the Handbook and a little deeepening of gamification and game-based learning. The educators that attended the meeting found the way the activities are taught really interesting and inspiring and expressed their willingness to adopt the presented learning path stressing on the value of a  future cooperation. 

Second Transnational Project Meeting

On the 18th, 19th and 20th of January the second Transnational Project Meeting took place in Portugal (Anadia).
Among the topics discussed there was the establishment of the next milestones.
Partners had also the chance to talk about the current status of the project, to make dicisions on the final structure of the projects results and to check and reflect upon the results of the questionaries of the activities carried out so far. 
Finally they discussed about content and organization of the trainings for associated partner.

International Conference in Portugal

On June 24th 2022, ELA was hosted at the International Conference “Adult Education – Inclusive and Sustainable” organized by "Agrupamento de Escolas de Anadia" in Portugal.

In that occasion we took the chance to present to an audience of more than 100 adult educators the project LINK and its objectives and forseen activity  talking about innovative skills to live in 21st century.


​Open Web Conference

The Open Web Conference of the European Project LINK took place on the 7th July.
It has been an opportunity to exchange best practices and experiences in the field of gamification and game-based learning. Six contributors chosen among the Partners and associated gave their speech on different related topics, after a brief presentation of the project.
If you want to read more about it, the official report is now available on the official website of the project.

First Transnational Project Meeting

​The first TPM took place in Bologna (18-19-20th May). During this first appointment the partner discussed the general implementation process of the project talking about Financial Management, Project Management tools and the Dissemination Plan.
They also planned the preparation activities, namely  the realization of the Open Web Conference and the Awareness campaign, defining each partners’ tasks and responsibilities.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.