Down Syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal disorder, occurring at about 1 in 600/1000 birth, worldwide population is about 6 million (www.globaldownsyndrome.org). They usually experience some degree of cognitive disability depending not only on a person health conditions or impairments but also on the extent to which environmental factors support the person’s full participation and inclusion in society.The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) recognizes the right of persons with disabilities to participate on an equal basis with others in recreational and leisure activities as a crucial factor for inclusion. The time people have outside their productive activities and how they can and choose to spend it, has a significant impact on their subjective notion of well-being, their happiness and their life satisfaction (Quality of life and leisure activities. Social Indicators Research, 102(1), 81-91). The self-determination theory and Person Centered Planning form the basis from which DS LEISURE training is designed. The focus is on inclusive activities for people with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities; trainers and people who have to deal with individuals with intellectual disabilities. DS LEISURE themes are related to the central themes of the UN CRPD: autonomy and full participation. In addition, DS Leisure sees the importance of: Question sent; what are the wishes and requirements of someone with a disabilityCustomization; everyone is different, the strength is to find a creative solution for the individual. Own direction; the experience for growth, self-direction and making contacts are the basis for self-developmentThe network; a good network of family, neighbours, friends around someone creates more inclusion and possibilities. Dialogue; this way of working increases self-awareness and ensures that people learn from each other. DS-LEISURE is launched with the main objective of increasing the competences (attitudes, skills, knowledge) of PDS, professionals working in leisure sector, families of PDS, formal, non-formal caregivers and volunteers, about how to improve Quality of Life of PDS through Inclusive Leisure through an innovative training program.The specific objectives are:To raise awareness and motivate the full collective about the importance of Inclusive Leisure for Quality of Life. To increase the autonomy of PDS for taking decisions about their leisure time with a global Wellbeing and QoL approach.To transfer knowledge and guidelines about how to implement Inclusive Leisure among PDS.To transfer knowledge and guidelines about to exploit ICT Tools (Apps and/ATs) for supporting inclusive leisure for PDS.Thanks to DS LEISURE training, targets can plan their personal leisure time and can participate in various leisure activities. It consists of 5 lessons provided by trainers or supervisors. The content is designed around: What is leisure time; What possibilities are there; What appeals to me; Create personal leisure plan and action plan; Presenting personal leisure time plan and action plan. The DS LEISURE training materials have been validated in four stages, with direct participation of people with Down syndrome, their network and professional of leisure environments. It started with 108 participants in co-creation working sessions and reached 193 participants in experiential training activities.On the DS LEISURE website: https://www.dsleisure.eu/ visitors can find the training materials organised in 3 categories: Compendious - general information about the project and training; Learners where the Workbook and evaluation form are presented; and Trainers where 5 guides and afferent evaluation forms in supporting this training are presented. All the training materials are downloadable for free. An e-Training Platform was developed for supporting the implementation of Training Materials and Experiential Training Activities by exploiting ICT tools for boosting the autonomy of PDS. It is an integral part of the project website and can be accessed through a direct link from the Home page of the website, or directly accessing the following link: http://learn.dsleisure.eu/The e-Training process is based on 5 lessons, which include Training Material, Games and Virtual Scenarios regarding the leisure activities. All of the above are available in English, Romanian, Greek, Italian, Dutch and Turkish.In DS LEISURE training more than 120 people with intellectual disabilities experinced 15 leisure environments training their competences: Self-awareness; Social skills; Assertiveness; Creativity and resolving power; Presentation skills; Request help and use the network; Ability to make choices; Communication; Orientation.564.449 participants indirectly addressed by the dissemination activities: website, social media, awareness presentations in the associations, conferences, seminars, workshops, on-line and paper publications, advertising products.

"BackgroundICT tools in ECEC services targeting vulnerable children (approx. 6% in EU28) are available a) to directly increase the efficiency of child related learning and b) to organizational processes. Despite the availability of these tools and APPs (e.g. 800 for children with autism) OECD points out, that professionals in most EU28 do not use them sufficiently. Lack of structured training (60% report auto-didactic learning) , myths (danger of addiction), skepticism towards early usage and missing exchange possibilities (which tool is useful/which not) inhibit the implementation of ICT tools despite the EU digital agenda, findings which highlight supporting effects regarding academic skills and a huge number of APPS and tools to be used in ECEC settings. Existing product platforms mainly follow commercial motivation and do not allow professional exchange within a community of practice of the professionals.AimsLets try I(C)T aims to increase the quality of ECEC services by increasing the usage of available ICT tools, a) on the level of concrete support for disadvantaged and/or disabled children and b) on the level of service planning, documentation and assessment.This aim in terms of further lifelong professional training is reached1) by a community of practice, where professionals learn from he experience of others (comparable to a trip-advisor system)2) by blended training regarding available best practice examples and tutoring (professionals become ICT multiplier for other3) by learning events within multiplier events (also available for other professionals within mobilities)Target groups-Professionals in Early childhood Intervention -Kindergarten teachers-Parents of disadvantaged children or with special educational needs (SEN) Products/Intellectual outcomes1) SEN- APP-ADVISOR: Platform of common learning and exchange for professionals comparable to social platforms like tripadvisor2) APP and Tool Multiplier: Online learning regarding best practice 3) APP-Tutoring: Didactic guidebook for multipliers in ECEC services to address the training needs of professionals regarding ICT Impact:Increase of usage of available ICT tools in ECEC in order to increase quality and efficiency of services by better trainingPartnership:Multisectorial and multigeographical consortium (Early Intervention (HR, DE) ,kindergarten, research (PT, TR), training (AT), SME (AT) , NGOs), most with high experience in EU cooperation. Expertise in ICT (AT, BE), in specific research (PT), EU dissemination (Down Sendromu Dernegi) and training (AT). Cooperation with training Institutions in DE (Medical School Hamburg).SustainabilitySEN-APP-ADVISOR: It remains (self) sustainable if a critical mass of ""users"" APP and TOOL MULTIPLIER: Involvement of governmental structures (quality control) and parental organisation to increase mainstream usage of participative/transparent and time-efficient ICT planning and documentation tools in ECECAPP-TUTORING: Implementation of APP tutoring workshop in mainstream training"

"Employment for Independent Life aims including the individuals with intellectual disability in work life.Therefore the priorities of the project are as given below: -Disability is element of social exclusion.We aim to ensure that individuals with intellectual disability participate in social and work life and integrate them with the community;and increase their basic and employability quality,and motivate them to use their potential.-Training will be provided to the personnel who will be responsible for the job placement of individuals with intellectual disability after graduation.So, we plan to improve the qualifications of staff working on education of individuals with intellectual disability.-The training program,as the project output,will be introduced to vocational counselors and teachers working with individuals with intellectual disability.They will be expected to apply this programme in employment process of individuals with intellectual disability.With the task sharing between project partners,a training program will be developed for the personnel responsible for the employment procedure of individuals with intellectual disability.Training will be provided to the target group. Piloting results of the training programme in different countrieswill be evaluated.The participants will share opinions about the process.The employment practice for individuals with intellectual disability will be discussed,and an employment model will be proposed as the project output.The model will be compatible with the EU standarts and policies.Participating organisation:Anadolu University(Turkey),Eskisehir Governorship(Turkey),Eskisehir Provincial Directorate of National Education(Turkey),Down Syndrome Association(Turkey),The Association Study Center City of Foligno(Italy),INTRAS(Spain), Die Querdenker (Austria), The organisations work on employment of the disabled and will focus on individuals with intellectual disabilities. Target group:People and organisations that will provide counseling to individuals with intellectual disability on sustainable employment matters such as job placement, job preparation,job skills,job continuity,orientation to workplace and workplace rules, adaptation to work.With the European Platform Against Poverty and Social Exclusion,an attempt of Europe 2020 Strategy;-combating social exclusion and poverty,-promoting social inclusion,-promoting social economy through a collaborative approach are aimed.The project will contribute to the 2020 strategy with collaboration of stakeholder countries and local partner organizations.With the model in the EU standards for preparing individuals with intellectual disability for employment,the inaccuracy will be minimized and a common language will be established. We plan 3 Transnational Project Meeting. The participants of partner organisations will be as given:Kick-off Meeting in Italy with 10,Spain Mobility with 12,Austria Mobility with 10.We plan 2 Multiplier Events:Opening Symposium For Situation Analysis Report with 100 participants in local+24 participants from EU states;Final Symposium For Sharing Results 100 participants in local+15 participants from EU states including Law and Policy makers,teachers working in special education of individuals with intellectual disability,Academics working in special education departments of universities,vocational counselors responsible for job placement of the disabled,representatives of the Chamber of Industry and Chamber of Commerce to represent the employers,provincial directors of public institutions,municipalities and local governments,NGO representatives and families of these individuals.Partner organizations will introduce employment practices of individuals with intellectual disability during mobilities, workshops and symposiums.A report will be prepared by analyzing the practice.This report will form the basis for the training program and help us to create other outputs of the project.During the situation analysis process, each partner country will take short videos showing their employment practices to create an ""experience film"". Training program will be developed for the personnel responsible for the employment of individuals with intellectual disability, planned to be composed of six sections, will be presented to the stakeholders with digital and printed materials and on a web page.Programme book will be written and distributed to the stakeholders.The training of the personnel responsible for the job placement of individuals with intellectual disability will become widespread.Personnel who completed the training will place three individuals with intellectual disability in the job. The personnel will implement the supported employment model in line with the training.With semi-structured interviews, we will learn their views and experiences on the job placement process and make necessary arrengements.Finally, an employment model will be developed after piloting for EU countries."

"Job Coaching Training : Place, Train, Maintain for people with Intellectual Disabilities (ID)Employment rate is very low (0,009%) among youth with ID in Turkey. In Europe, people with ID are unemployed on a long-term basis and their employment levels and economic activity fall quite below that of even people with other types of disabilities. In Poland, very few are employed and there is no framework for supported employment. In Greece, although there is a greater access of people with ID in education and training, the families face with the relatively limited social and financial support, and there is also very limited access to employment. Thus, job coaching in the concept of supported employment can be considered a well-suited access to improve the sustainability in their jobs and facilitate the integration between the employers and co-workers without disabilities in the job environment. In this context, job coaching training may contribute the facilitation of their success in jobs that the people with ID are placed in.Therefore, the aim of the project was to create the job coaching concept in Turkey, Poland and Greece, and train young university graduates as job coaching trainers.The participants of the project are 1-Yeditepe University Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Istanbul, Turkey-YU group2-Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, Greece-ATHEI-ILLL group3-Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego Jozefa Pilsudskiego w Warszawie, Department of Physiotherapy, Poland-AWFJ group4-Association of Down’s Syndrome, Turkey, Istanbul-Down’s Turkey GroupIn this context, the main activities undertaken were as follows;1-Under the hosting of Yeditepe University one workshops and one symposium were accomplished.2-A web site (www.jobcoachingtr.com) was made in English and it is free on-line. The Turkish translation studies will be completed by the end of this year.3-A transnational book titled with ""Job Coaching for People with Intellectual Disabilities: Place, Train, Maintain the model for Turkey, Greece and Poland"" (13 Chapters; 142 pages) was performed including the educational and social status of people with ID in the partner countries, job coaching actions should be taken to upgrade their vocational status in the community, and the case studies of youngsters assessed and placed or planed to be placed to jobs during the process of this project. It is free on-line through the web site of the project (http://jobcoachingtr.com/Jobcoaching/transnationalbook.html)4-20 hard copies will be distributed between the partners by December 2016 as it was planned5-An elective course titled with ""PTR 264 Job Coaching Training: Place, Train, Maintain for People with Intellectual Disabilities – (2 2 3) 3ECTS"" in Yeditepe University was opened and forty-two (42) students enrolled and completed the course. Ten students from Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego Jozefa completed the course for three days (18hrs). Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki opened the course for students who were all successful. Each course was embedded into the curriculum of the universities as electives, and prepared according to the Bologna Process but also according to the characteristics of the universities and cultural diversions of each country. 6- A Job Coaching Training Manuel (4 Sections; 41 pages) was made to guide the job coaches during the job coaching process (vocational profile, work site analyses of employee and employers etc.) for people with ID. 7-A scientific paper was prepared explaining the aim and structure and the achievements of this project and submitted to the British Journal of Occupational Therapy by August 2016.8-The project was presented as two posters, first in the 5th National Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Congress in May 20-25, 2015 in Turkish, and then, in a national exposition in relation to accessibility and disability in Turkish and in English. A presentation of the project was performed in March 30, 2016 during the meeting organized by the International Office of the Yeditepe University regarding to the project preparations on Erasmus Plus. Overall, we may conclude the job coaching training that the project team had in this project that was given to the project members provided them the required knowledge and skills to train job coaches in their home countries. Sixty-two undergraduate and graduate students who had the job coaching courses, in addition to the target groups joined to workshops and the symposium increased their knowledge and awareness on the training of job coaches for people with ID, locally, regionally, as well as in national and international level. The Association of Supported Employment, Turkey was set as a result of this project is expected to continue to disseminate the knowledge and practice of job coaching activities for the sustainability of the outcomes of this project."

"CONTEXT OF THE PROJECT IDENTIFIED NEEDS 0,1% of European citizens are now living with ID (prevalence of people with Down Syndrome is 1/2000). Average life expectancy of these individuals has increased; it is now around 60. The right to work is getting crucial to ensure their independent living and self-determination. People with ID face a much higher unemployment rate than the rate applied to the general population. Furthermore, the vast majority have never experienced any form of vocational training and this is a further limit to their access to the labour market. Hospitality companies and VET providers for people with ID are two ""worlds"" which are still strangers. DATA According to US disability statistics (2015), only 25,6 % of the labour force with ID is employed (76% of non-disabled ). In UK (2016) people with ID have the lowest employment rate among all disabilities (only 23,9%). (House of Commons briefing paper 7540, 14/12/2016). OVERALL OBJECTIVE Facilitate the access of European citizens with ID to VET and employment in the hospitality sector, through long- lasting collaborative partnership between VET agencies and employers. PURPOSE Increased capacity of both sides of the network-VET providers and hospitality companies- to operate together both atlocal and at transnational level aiming at job inclusion of trainees with ID. OPERATIONAL OBJECTIVES Strenghtening the network Exchange of good practice mainly between VET providers and hospitality organisations . *Sharing ideas, practices, methods and tools (app for trainees ,videos for their colleagues, e learning for hotel/restaurant managers): +Focused project meetings and monthly Skype meetings. +Tutored internships abroad of trainees with ID *Awareness raising of the managers of partner organisations belonging to the hospitality sector about the opportunity and feasibility of job inclusion of people with ID +on line training resources +study visits abroad . NUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTS Main beneficiaries of the project have been: + 12 trainees with ID, who had their intership abroad; + 12 hospitality managers who took part in the study visit; + 30 hospitality managers who attended the learning course. ACTIVITIES Strengthening the network a. Structuring its governance and ensuring its sustainability b. Facilitating dialogue among the different partners, expecially those belonging to different ""worlds""also by promoting exchanges at many levels (managers, professionals and trainees) c. Drafting guidelines for internships of people with ID at ""home"" and abroad and study visits of managers to learn good practice. d. Providing e learning resources for managers and staff about job inclusion of people with ID e. Promoting internships of trainees with intellectual disabilities in a hospitality company abroad. f. Organising Study visits of hotel managers to hospitality companies as examples of good practiceg. Producing an e learning course for hospitality managers in 7 languages with evaluation questionnaires.h. Advertising the network through social media, interviews at the TV and radio, speeches at meetings (UN in NY as well) METHODOLOGY Strengthening the network: facilitating contacts among members, ensuring visibility to its members and testing the system through internships and study visits. Extending the network: diffusion of the Valueable-handing opportunities registered trade mark, to encourage the commitment of managers. Awareness raising of managers of potential members. Agreements with relevant stakeholders. Vocational training of people with ID: training on the job at “home” and internships abroad. Diffusion of the “On my own at work” app. Training of their colleagues with the videotutorials. RESULTS ACHIEVED 14 trainees abroad. Instead of 12. Half of them went to Axis Porto and the other half went to Hotel Melià Milano. During the project, the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Hamburg made itself available for hosting an internship of two youngsters from Campobasso (Italy). 12 managers took part in two study visits abroad. 6 Italians went to Porto (Axis Hotel) and 4 Portuguese, one German and one Turkish managers went to Milano (Hotel Melià). Thus 2 visits of 6 people were organised instead of three of four people. 30 managers trained with e-learning and coming from 6 different countries IMPACT OBTAINED VET providers for people with ID and hospitality organisations got aquainted and established long-lasting partnerships. More than 100 hotels, restaurants in 6 countries have subscribed the network, got the label (trade mark) and included people with ID within their workforce."