ARTICAP where Art is a way to include Disabled Students. Erasmus Project

Project Title

ARTICAP where Art is a way to include Disabled Students.

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; Disabilities – special needs; Civic engagement / responsible citizenship

Project Summary

Over the years, the European Union States have implemented public policies in an effort to facilitate the inclusion of people with special needs in their school systems. School is aimed at being a place of success, autonomy and fulfilment for all.
Though a turning point was reached in France in 2005, Italy had been leading an innovative policy to support disabled people’s access to school education since 1977 while removing all kind of marginalization. In Belgium a similar evolution also took place.
However, in spite of regular progress at national and European level, our research led us to highlight the fact that the inclusion and the wellbeing of students in our respective schools deserve to benefit from our creative efforts.
Through this project, we try to promote the reflection on problematics related to the inclusion of disabled people inside schools and thus fight against various forms of exclusion that may affect them. First, the point is to develop a better knowledge of the typology of handicaps. On this basis, we wish to promote a more positive outlook on these different situations. We would also like to highlight the sticking points and more particularly the ones linked to the accessibility of school facilities.
Finally, the European dimension is essential: the examples of the other countries will be food for thought for all the project members.
In this project, a maximum of about 30 students in each partner country will be mobilized, supervised by 5 to 7 adults from the educational teams. These headcounts of participants should favour a mobilization and a constructive management of the groups in order to achieve all the common goals. The participants will be the students involved in the subjects related to the project (Italian, French, History of the Arts). Depending on the schools, they may be issued from one single level or several levels. Although it seems quite obvious that the integration of disabled students will be encouraged, the personal commitment and altruistic feelings of students must be the rule.
We deliberately chose to tackle the complex issues of disabilities through an original channel: confronting existing works of art to the realities observed on the ground. The considered activities will mainly rely on the parody of famous artworks from the artistic heritage of each partner country. Two approaches have been privileged: posters made from the photography of a parodied graphic artwork and living performance paintings designed from paintings or opera tunes, choreographed and filmed. We also opted for including the topic of the mask in our project -common in the heritage of all the partner countries-and to promote their making. Choosing a work of art as an essential medium is highly meaningful in our eyes since artwork involves a sensitive relation to its content, allowing a more direct contact with the observer, relying on emotions. Therefore, the different types of artwork parody (posters, living performance paintings) should enable a confrontation between the expected reality of the artwork -well-known to everyone- and the reality presented by the parody. The clash of ideas is immediate and the awareness to the message conveyed more intense. The production of masks -included in the other productions- should stir a new reflection:
Should they be used to show or hide the observed realities?
Over the two-year period, the progress of the project work and the completed productions (posters, living performance paintings, masks) will be disseminated through the E-Twinning platform and thanks to a specific website, as well as the teamwork of students from the three partner countries. During the last mobility in France, all the work accomplished will be displayed in a global exhibition. We hope this advertising work will offer a constant visibility and thus raise awareness on the various disability related issues among a wider audience far beyond the school communities.
We also plan to give life to the project outside the school: the completed posters will be designed as the core of an exhibition intended to be displayed in other school structures or associations. Therefore, the knowledge and conclusions of the project will help keep further reflections alive. Besides, the synergies established between the schools will contribute to enhance European opening among the students. Last but not least, we hope that these efforts will lead to visible changes in attitudes and behaviors, a better consideration for handicaps in each school in order to give effect to success and wellbeing for all.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 98377 Eur

Project Coordinator

LYCEE Fernand DAGUIN & Country: FR

Project Partners

• Athénée Provincial mixte warocque Morlanwelz
• I.I.S. “Guarasci-Calabretta”