Living alone is hard,
Working alone is hard,
Living alone is hard…
…but beautifulFrank
(adult with profound intellectual disability)
In Sosnowiec, we have been developing a unique system of comprehensive, inter-ministerial support for people with profound intellectual disabilities for many years, which we have called the „Ideal World”. In our somewhat fairy-tale world, we are looking for innovative solutions that support the development of an independent and possibly autonomous life for people with profound intellectual disabilities. Over the years, we have managed to build not only close cooperation between the Special School Complex No. 4 in Sosnowiec and the Social Services and Support Centre, allowing for the coordination of support at the school and after-school stage, but also to create a unique space for the development of an independent life for our students and graduates, going beyond the framework of general institutions. In addition to the School, Community Self-Help Homes, and the Daily Social Welfare Home, the Institute for Creative Integration Foundation was established, which enabled a significant expansion of the support offer in our „Ideal World”. Among the many activities implemented, the key activities are oriented around the organisation of supported/sheltered housing for people with disabilities and supporting the employment of this group of people on the open/sheltered labour market.
Currently, there are 5 apartments for disabled adults, where over 30 people live in „family” groups of 6-8 people with little support. Thanks to the support from the „EOS” project, also implemented as part of the Education program, we managed to develop an innovative strategy for preparing our students and graduates for the challenges of adulthood, and in particular independent living. A natural step into the future was to take up the subject of work. Over the years, the Sosnowiec Social Cooperative S3 was launched in the „Ideal World” – a free-market entity employing 3 to 5 people with profound disabilities and producing artistic ceramics, and the Creative Car Wash was also established – a workplace for several more disabled people providing car washing and cleaning services. All these are groundbreaking and important initiatives, but they are still too little in relation to the needs of our students and pupils. There is still a lack of systemic solutions in this area. It has become necessary for us to take action to change this state of affairs.
INTELLECTUAL WORK OUTPUTS
Thanks to the Education program and the support of Donors from Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, the AION project was created – which allowed for the development of a comprehensive system of education preparing for work and professional activation of people with intellectual disabilities.
As part of the project, 4 results of intellectual work were developed:
STRATEGY FOR VOCATIONAL PREPARATION AT THE SCHOOL STAGE
These are comprehensive solutions for special schools that allow for increasing the effectiveness and adjustment of education preparing for work to the requirements of the modern labor market. Tools (questionnaires) for professional pre-orientation have been developed, which will facilitate the process of planning the students’ education path. A set of detailed curricula has been developed in selected professional areas. Workshops preparing for work have been prepared, adapted to the needs of students and to the real requirements of the labor market.
FOR SCHOOL
Based on the experience developed in the „EOS” project, the teaching methodology based on Skills Formative Assessment (SOK) and the e-portfolio method was adapted to the requirements of vocational education. In order to monitor students’ development, tools for functional diagnosis in the area of education preparing for work were developed. As a result of testing and implementation activities, a set of skill cards and lesson scenarios preparing for work were developed, ready for use by all interested teachers.
CAREER ACTIVITY CENTER MODEL
One of the biggest challenges for the professional activation of people with intellectual disabilities is building a bridge between school and the labor market. For this purpose, the concept of the Vocational Activation Center was developed – a potential entity supporting the employment of people with disabilities. As part of this result, we primarily built cooperation with the Sosnowiec County Labor Office. A path of professional preparation was developed, starting from internships supported by a professional internship to formal employment.
CAREER ACTIVATION CENTER
You will find a lot of practical information here – from documentation necessary for organizing internships, through practical information for employers, to information for people with disabilities themselves interested in employment. CAC also developed a program for the development of soft skills necessary to undertake professional activity, called „Orangery of Personality”. Finally, we invite you to use the job placement portal for people with disabilities developed in the project.
CONCEPT OF A CONTINUING EDUCATION CENTER FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
In the Polish system, there are almost no strictly educational institutions for adults with disabilities who have already completed their school education. The “AION” project has developed a number of materials and solutions that can support the development of lifelong learning for people with more profound intellectual disabilities.
LIFELONG LEARNING
Here you will find, among other things, Catalogs of skills necessary for planning professional development for individual job positions. Based on the catalogs, a number of development courses and related functional tests have also been developed to assess readiness for work.
RESEARCH PROJECT
Thanks to cooperation with the academic community in the field of special education, we hope that the developed materials are of high quality and can provide real, modern support in the education and professional activation of people with moderate and significant intellectual disabilities.
RESEARCH PROJECT
The “AION” project was subject to a structured research procedure throughout its entire implementation period. Starting from the recognition of the diverse conditions of the process of professional activation of people with disabilities, comparison of solutions in this area undertaken in Poland and Iceland, to action research during the implementation activities.
The project would never have been successful without cross-sectoral cooperation with various entities.
The formal project partners were:
Logis Loegmenn
Icelandic entity intermediating and animating the exchange of experience and knowledge between systems from Poland and Iceland;
NOE New Areas of Education Association
which organized and supported scientific cooperation in the project.
ITI Foundation Institute for Creative Integration
which supported the implementation of activities targeted at adults with disabilities, graduates of special schools.
In addition to the formal partners, our activities were also supported by many people and entities whose commitment and support allowed us to implement the project so effectively.
In particular, we would like to thank Mr. Mateusz Bochenek – Member of the Polish Parliament, who supported this initiative from the very beginning and combined what sometimes seemed impossible to combine.
The project would never have started without the trust and support of Ms. Anna Jedynak-Rykała, currently Chairwoman of the Sosnowiec City Council, and previously the Plenipotentiary of the President of Sosnowiec and Vice-Marshal of the Silesian Voivodeship. We thank you with all our hearts!
Many of our ideas and proposed solutions would never have been implemented if it were not for the District Labor Office in Sosnowiec and the commitment combined with faith in the idea of Mr. Sławomir Sagadyn, Director of the PUP Sosnowiec and his wonderful team headed by Deputy Director Ms. Agnieszka Bondaruk. We hope that this is just the beginning of our further cooperation.
We would like to thank the Humanitas Academy for their repeated support, especially for helping to organize the 2nd Forum of Special Education Teachers.
Finally, our most important Partner – the Social Services and Support Center in Sosnowiec with exceptional commitment, kind words, advice and support from Director Leszek Falis and his team.
We would also like to thank Taekniskollin in Reykjavik with the wonderful Rosa Hronn Arnadottir at the helm, the wonderful teachers and students of this facility with whom we share many important experiences and memories.
Warmest regards to the entire Throskahajlp team from Iceland – especially to Anna Lára Steindal, thanks to whom we always felt at home in Iceland, to Katarzyna Kubiś, who helped us understand many nuances hidden in the language and cultural differences and truly immerse ourselves in the Icelandic support system.
Glory to you and thanks!
The AION Project Team
sosnowiec, 2024