1. Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor PROJECT LEONARDO DA VINCI Boris Aberšek Metka Kordigel Aberšek Majda Schmidt University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

2. TARGET GROUPS The main aims of the project are to train: Teachers to work with parents. Teachers are trained to work with children but they don’t have the necessary knowledge to work with adults, especially with very emotional adults (like parents of the disabled children) ParentsParents to become tutors for disabled children. This will enable parents to become a better support to disabled in the integration process in social and working environment. Employer for tutors. They should also become a better support to disabled in their working and social environment. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

3. WHY? The developments of the tutoring system for disabled can than help us achieve the following: better quality of life for disabled people to alleviate the work of people who are involved with disabled to raise the quality of integration of disabled in all areas of their life to help raise the work ability of disabled – to help put the right people on the right work places, which will help to make disabled happier and satisfied and will result in better efficiency and satisfied employers. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

4. Needs analyses and realisation of the aims and objectives We decided that the target group is the people with small and medium special needs. The selected age group: young people who go to school and included also some adults to compare how they integrate in the working environment after they finish school. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

5. We agreed that three fields of knowledge /skills should be transferred to parents: 1. Knowledge about the child's retardation (description of child's retardation, what can he achieve, what can be expected), knowledge about burn out effect and stress, skills for mastering stress and support for the parents. 2. Knowledge how to support child's literacy 3. Communication. Acquisition of skills for nonverbal communication – creative approach by work with the children with mental retardation. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

6. For all interested we prepare the educational package with personal assistance of the project members. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

7. RECOGNITION AND TREATMENT OF STRESS DISORDERS University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

8. Stress recognition can save a life When it comes to a late or prolonged reaction to the severe stress events, like torment or sexual abuse, when it is about life and death, and when intrusive memories cause nightmares, anxiety, alienation, emotional apathy, and absence of responding, in such cases the recognition of stress can sometimes be of life importance, and the help of experts urgent. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

9. So, what is stress? Stress is a complex of physical, biochemical and mental reactions to circumstances that trigger confusion, unwillingness and agitation in humans. Reactions do not arise solely from stress factors themselves but mostly from our detection of an event and our reaction to it. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

10. Do you have some strategy? Our strategy is pointed toward areas of changing demands, and increasing capabilities for managing demands: 1. with relaxation (we have been using the technique of autogenous training very successfully for several years), 2.behaviour changes, 3.changes in life style, and 4.improving characteristic features. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

11. Help yourself, and… Stress management is a knowledge, which should be used by everybody, and is the basis for self-help. The knowledge in this field is even more important for doctors, psychologists, teachers, employers, you. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

12. Hello, do you have burn out syndrom? Carers of persons with dementia have increased rates of depressive illnes but the biological mechanisms by which the stress of caring can lead to mood disorders is not well understood (Davis,Oxford). University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

13. Don’t forget The level of stress in tutors influences the quality and number of interactions with a child. Children of stress-managed tutors make better progress. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

14. What do we have to know, to train communication skills Metka Kordigel Aberšek University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

15. We decided to accept the advice of the Greek expert partners in the project and lean the communication curriculum for parents to the INTECOM model. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

16. Why does INTECOM communication curriculum works? We must widen the perspective: –From the question WHAT DO WE DO WITH WORDS –we swich to the question WHAT IS COMMUNICATION University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

17. WHAT IS COMMUNICATION Communication is not only the act of speech. To understand what is going on we must consider other modes of "speaking act". We must think about types of communication. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

18. How to teach? At this point we reached our main point: the way (the didactics) how to "teach" communication competence of children with learning difficulties and how to teach their parents to encourage the development of their communicative competence and to communicate with them more successfully. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

19. How to develop contexts for teaching communication we can create teaching communication environment in an institution or we can teach tutors to use such situations in child's every day life, as the INTECOM communication curriculum does. University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE

20. Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Questions, discussion…? University of Maribor, Faculty of Education Faculty of Naturale Sciences and mathematics University of Maribor Pilot Project  PARENTS: TRAINING MOST POWERFUL SUPPORTERS AND GUIDERS OF DISABLE PEOPLE