The project
The Plural Words project aims to encourage the acquisition of oral and written skills using tools and approaches inspired by Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC).
The aim of AAC is to replace or supplement natural speech when this is affected (disability, disorder, age, foreign language, etc.) in order to move towards a more inclusive way of communicating that reconciles several levels of communication.
Through this project, Plural Words aims to ensure inclusion and equal conditions for learning, encourage educational success and promote access to culture and citizenship. To do this, we want to open up and democratise access to AAC tools, which have proved effective in the field of disability, to make them useful to a wider audience, particularly those with speech and learning difficulties.
Context
In 2023, many people are still marginalised in communications. Traditional methods of communication remain complex and exclusive, particularly for people with disabilities.
A Unesco report (2017) identified that 14% of Western children still do not achieve key literacy and numeracy skills. This highlights the considerable challenges that many people face from an early age. These challenges are exacerbated for people with disabilities, who are often left behind by traditional modes of communication and a lack of awareness and training in AAC tools.
Alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) is still little known and often misunderstood by those who have no direct reason to be interested in it.
Goals
Plural Words aims to achieve the following objectives:
- Produce and experiment with innovative and creative tools based on visual factors
- Provide teachers and education professionals with AAC tools and training.
- Democratising AAC learning and teaching for all learners in early years and primary schools.
Target groups
The Plural Words project is aimed at young people aged 6 to 12, as well as teachers, families and education and mediation professionals (educators, trainers, mediators).
Resources
1
e-learning module
1
Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) toolkit
1
pedagogical guide
1
implementation guide
Les partenaires
École Josip Matos
Josip Matos Primary School has been the only independent school for pupils with disabilities in the Vukovar-Srijem region since 1970. It provides primary education and care for children and young people with disabilities, education and care for pre-school children, and primary education for adults with disabilities.
Liceul Tehnologic Special pentru Deficienti de Auz Cluj-Napoca
Liceul Tehnologic Special pentru Deficienti de Auz Cluj-Napoca (Special Technological High School for Hearing Impaired Cluj-Napoca) is a Romanian public institution based in Cluj-Napoca with over 130 years of expertise in providing educational services for children with hearing impairments and/or associated disabilities.
Logopsycom
As a center for educational innovation, Logopsycom creates and uses alternative methods or tools (digital or not) to support schools, vocational training centers, educational organizations, youth and parents. The center is specialized in learning disorders in young people, especially in “dys” disorders (dyspraxia, dysphasia, dyslexia…).
Special School and Education Center im. UNICEF
Special School and Education Center im. UNICEF in Słupsk is an educational institution for children and young people with special educational needs. Special education centres are set up for children and young people who are deaf or hard of hearing, blind or partially sighted, have physical disabilities, including aphasia, autism, Asperger’s syndrome, or mild, moderate or severe intellectual disabilities.
