ICT INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

Nowadays, it is widely accepted that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is used in every step of education. Educators and students face a great challenge and have to cover a distance that separates the knowledge and skills given by schools, today, from the knowledge and skills necessary for the future of the citizens of the emerging knowledge society.
Moreover, ICT under pedagogical conditions can be one of the most important tools for educators and students to develop cognitive, social and technological skills in order to be able to respond critically and creatively, to supplement the needs of the new social and economic reality that is constantly changing. Therefore, it seems to be more important for students to learn how to be able to communicate, to share, to use information and to solve complex problems, instead of using ordinary skills. The crucial case, which is still open, is that students of the twenty-first century will need to be taught different skills than those learned by the students of the twentieth century therefore it is vital for educators to be able to provide those skills.

- Purpose
If we really believe that the resignation and sterile negation are the other side of the same coin, then we need to look for new, original and innovative ideas that could lay the foundation of an alternative and creative approach to addressing educational issues.
Despite various educational policies and decisions, the educators play a key role in the adoption and development of any educational innovation; for this reason, educators are considered to be the most important factor in education reforms. Therefore, the attitudes of educators towards computers have been addressed and have been described as the key to successful integration of ICT in education.
The aim of the course is to provide knowledge on contemporary educational approaches that draw on the principles of inclusive education and promote equal learning, participation and opportunities for all students, including students with disabilities. It is also an approach on the significance of the contribution of ICT use in the classroom as a learning tool and especially in the education of disabled students as it assures accessibility and active participation for all students. In addiction teachers, trainers and education managers will gain an outlook on best practices and concrete ways to use ICT to empower and support inclusive education

- Objectives
-After the completion of the course participants will be able to:
- Understand the concept digital pedagogy and the need for developing a digital pedagogy of your own
- Know some of the imperatives that drive change in educational practices
- Learn the Key Principles of Inclusive Education
- Realize the importance of PBL methodology
- Get familiar with ICT, digital storytelling and their emerging role in contemporary education
- Gain the ability to create an educational video
- Realize the importance of inclusive education
- Create digital stories and games
- Combine ICT with Inclusive Education
- Use web based simulations for educational purposes
- Have a clear understanding of what it means to be digital content creator and how that can be developed by teachers

Target Groups
Teachers working in kindergartens, primary schools, lower secondary schools.

Methods & Tools
Lectures, exercises, discussions, teamwork, role-playing, study visits.

Agenda
Day 1
✓ Introductory meeting, explanation of practical arrangements, presentation of timetable, information about course venue.
✓ Icebreakers, Introduction to the Course
✓ Visit to the historical center of Heraklion
✓ Visit to info point of the Municipality of Heraklion for information about Crete.

Day 2
A digital pedagogy for creation, literacy and numeracy in inclusive education
✓ How digital expectancy will change teaching.
✓ Meaning and Importance of Creativity in Modern School.
✓ Creative technologies and play.
✓ The role of technology in emerging literacy and numeracy.
✓ Developing a digital pedagogy for creative, purposeful and experimental learning with technology
✓ The importance of inclusive education
✓ Anticipating Problems with Inclusion for both Learners and Teachers
✓ Introduction to issues of social and societal responsiveness and cultural heterogeneity of the modern school
✓ Ways of developing inclusive school culture
✓ The important role of teacher in inclusive education

Day 3
ICT and Collaborative Creativity in Modern School Towards Knowledge Society
✓ Collaborative Creativity (CC) and the Role of ICT
✓ From Theory to Practice: Encouraging Collaborative Creativity for Primary Students by Using Advanced Learning Technologies

Contextualized Educators’ Training: Digital Storytelling
✓ Contextualized Teaching and Learning
✓ Digital Storytelling as an Approach for Teaching and Training (workshop)

Day 4
Producing Educational Videos: A Field-Based Implementation with Project Based Learning (PBL) Methodology
✓ Introduction in basic video theory
✓ Education through moving image: case studies
✓ Simple programs for making videos
✓ Project Based Learning Methodology – importance and practice
✓ Making an educational video (Workshop)

Day 5
Fostering Students’ Understanding with Web-Based Simulations in an Inquiry Continuum Framework
✓ Simulations as an Educational Tool
✓ Use of Simulations in Science Instruction
✓ Creation of Educational Simulations

Gamification and Game Mechanics-Based e-Learning
✓ Digital games as a teaching tool
✓ Realizing the importance of play in education
✓ Creating a game scenario with simple digital tools (workshop)
✓ Erasmus+ program: objectives, priorities, actions, forms, budget, tips for applicants
✓ Planning follow up activities, dissemination and exploitation of learning outcomes
✓ Course Evaluation
✓ Certifications