incluD-ed welcomes its first six Associated Members!
Tue, 10/12/2013
incluD-ed officially welcomes its first five Associated Members!
The University of Akureyri in Iceland, queraum. cultural & social research from Austria, Association RENINCO from Romania, Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education (CSIE) from the UK, FIRAH (International Foundation of Applied Disability Research) from France and Inclusion Ireland from Dublin (Ireland) have been invited as Associated Members for their outstanding work and knowledge in the field of inclusive education and joined the network as associated members.
incluD-ed Associated Members are organisations and researchers from all over Europe working in the field of disability and inclusive education as well as for the inclusion of people with disabilities in all areas of society. They bring knowledge on local contexts and on at least one thematic axe of the network and provide support in regards to the signing of joint documents of incluD-ed oriented to European or international institutions or key actors, to further improve the positioning of inclusion and inclusive education on political and public agendas.
Since September 2013, incluD-ed Associated Members support and disseminate, as part of their activities and possibilities, the key messages, objectives and main results of incluD-ed and provide best practices to the network, supporting the work of incluD-ed founding partners (Fundación ONCE as leader, Kynnys Ry, APF and Rytmus). At the same time, the network offers them visibility at European level, new contacts and collaboration opportunities with organizations working in the field of inclusion and inclusive education as well as an exchange platform from which they can share their experiences and best practices on inclusion and inclusive education.
The incluD-ed network aims to invite and integrate at least one organization and/or researcher from all 28 countries of the European Union.
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► queraum. cultural & social research is a private research organisation from Vienna, Austria, founded in 2004, focusing on health promotion, empowerment and participation of socially excluded groups, inclusion of people with disabilities, volunteering, gender mainstreaming and diversity issues.
The practical orientation of research work is very important for queraum. They are reliable partners for successful planning, implementing and further developing concepts, projects and services with a long-standing experience in the coordination and evaluation of European-projects in the Lifelong Learning Programme: e.g. Trainsition (Leonardo), New Paths to Inclusion & New Paths to Inclusion Network (Leonardo), Sign Library, Senior-Guides & Adult Education Made Accessible (Grundtvig), Sign Language @ School (Comenius), Access to specialised victim support services for women with disabilities who have experienced violence (Daphne)
Network themes: Transit to other levels of education from secondary education, Transition to adult life and the labour market
► FIRAH, the International Foundation of Applied Disability Research from Paris, France, focuses on disability research at the international level. The Foundation is committed to the right to equality for all people and promotes and spreads knowledge and innovative practices for persons with disabilities. Through cross-border cooperation, FIRAH not only wants to collect, but also to promote and implement new practices.
FIRAH finances research projects in relevant fields, either directly or through collaboration with organizations carrying out similar or complementary work. FIRAH also coordinates a "Resource Center" that aims at creating connections and bonds between people directly affected by disability, researchers and other legal entities and individuals. It develops and disseminates research to promote an inclusive social transformation and facilitate full involvement of disabled persons via qualitative support.
Network themes: Secondary Education, Transit to other levels of education from secondary education, Transition to adult life and the labour market, New technologies
► Hermina Gunnthorsdottir is lecturer at the University of Akureyri, Iceland and Ph.D. - student at the University of Iceland, Reykjavík. She finished her research training program at the Institute of Education, University of London.
Her research field is related to: Inclusive school and education; school, society and culture; educational policy and practice; teacher education; disability studies; the education of minority and marginalised groups. Hermina is responsible for courses and teaching on above issues. The focus of her Ph.D.-project which she will finish in 2014 is on teachers and inclusive education.
Network themes: Secondary Education, Transit to other levels of education from secondary education
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► Inclusion Ireland is the national organization advocating for the rights of people with intellectual disabilities in Ireland. Established in 1961 in Dublin, its vision is of a society where people with intellectual disabilities live and participate in the community with equal rights as citizens. Our focus is on the realization of the core principles and values expressed in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Inclusion Ireland supports families and self-advocates through information provision and advocacy in vindicating their rights, such as the right to an inclusive education, the right to continuing education, further training, a job, a place to live and to be an active part of their community. Inclusion Ireland also monitors and makes submissions on legislation and policy that has an impact on the lives of people with a disability.
Network themes: Secondary Education, Transit to other levels of education from secondary education, Transition to adult life and the labour market
► Association RENINCO Romania, based in Bucharest and also known as the National Network for Information and Cooperation to Support Community Integration, is one of the leading NGOs in Romania fighting for the educational and social inclusion of all children and youngsters.
Reninco offers divers training courses on integrated and inclusive education for teachers, parents of children with disabilities, staff working in residential institutions for children with disabilities as well as for educational managers. Furthermore, Reninco does action-research and studies such as the piloting of an OECD instrument for data collection in schools regarding SEN pupils and of Inclusive education in primary schools in 2012.
Renincos main publications include “Steps towards inclusive education in Romania” (UNICEF, MEC & RENINCO, 2008) and “Promoting inclusive education in the primary school. Guide for teachers, parents and educational managers” (UNICEF & RENINCO, 2013)”
Network themes: Secondary Education, Transit to other levels of education from secondary education, Transition to adult life and the labour market, New technologies
► The Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education (CSIE) from Bristol, United Kingdom, is a national charity that works to promote equality and eliminate discrimination in education. Founded in 1982, the Centre has been at the cutting edge of educational change for over 30 years.
The CSIE works towards raising public awareness and transforming education. In addition to lobbying and campaigning activities, CSIE offers training and consultancy nationally & internationally and produces a wide range of resources to support the development of inclusive education.
Recent achievements include the publication of the "Index for inclusion: developing learning and participation in schools" (Booth & Ainscow, 2011, 3rd edition), translated into 40 languages and active involvement in drafting Article 24 (Education) of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Network themes: Secondary Education, Transit to other levels of education from secondary education, Transition to adult life and the labour market
