DEVELOPMENT OF A TRAINING PROGRAM FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE OF PERSONS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES THROUGH “SERIOUS GAMES” Erasmus Project

Project Title

DEVELOPMENT OF A TRAINING PROGRAM FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE OF PERSONS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES THROUGH “SERIOUS GAMES”

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 : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Disabilities – special needs; Inclusion – equity

Project Summary

15 million EU citizens have an intellectual disability (POMONA II, 2008). It means a reduction of the ability to understand new or complex information and learn and apply new skills (World Health Organization). In Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (PwID) the following cognitive functions may be impaired, hindering proper knowledge acquisition and competence development: Attention, Memory, Reasoning, Language, Perception, Problem-Solving, Conceptualizing, Self-Regulation, Social development.

Since people with cognitive deficits (i.e. neurodevelopmental or intellectual disabilities) have limitations in adaptive behavior they represent an important target of interventions specifically aimed at improving overall function independence and Quality of Life (QoL). Therefore, PwID must be trained for improving impaired cognitive functions in order to increase their ability to understand new or complex information, learn and apply new skills, improve their adaptive behavior and, accordingly, their QoL.

Traditional training methodologies often do not apply to PwID, or are insufficient. The use of ICT Serious Games (ICT-SG) or “training games” is fairly accepted by PwID because they are more motivated, don´t feel the pressure of real world, feeling comfortable to explore virtual world, being able to keep attention on tasks, and can develop motor coordination and spatial orientation. Therefore, ICT-SG constitute an alternative or complement to current training methods for PwID.

The main objective ID-GAMING is to increase the competences of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities and related Professionals and Relatives in the implementation of ICT Serious Games for improving cognitive functions, and therefore, their QoL. Specific objectives of ID GAMING are:

• To increase the awareness of this target group regarding the relevance of ICT-SG
• To select and collect proper ICT-SG for better training the cognitive functions of PwID according to the specific needs and capacities.
• To transfer knowledge, guidelines and procedures on how to use ICT-SG to produce specific aimed outcomes in terms of cognitive functions and Quality of Life
• To develop and improve Digital Skills of PwID
• To increase the socialization of PwID through the collaborative gaming and involvement of the Relatives in the use of ICT Serious Games out of the care centers.

Through the execution of this Project the next main results will be obtained:

Quality of Life Training Game (Intellectual Output 1).
A Serious Game called Quality of Life Training Game (QoLTG) will be designed. The main purpose of this Collaborative Serious Game is to facilitate PwID the improvement of their cognitive functions and quality of life while playing this game. PwID and Supports will participate in the design of this output.

Training Toolkit (Intellectual Output 2)
A Training Toolkit will be developed including:
– Methodological Guidelines for playing Quality of Life Game (I.O.1) with training purposes;
– Training Materials, developed specifically to create awareness and increase knowledge about the potential of ICT-Serious Games for training cognitive functions and increasing Quality of Life;
– ICT Serious Games Catalogue, organized per Cognitive Functions including 3 to 5 selected existing ICT Serious Games per cognitive function. They will be adapted to the specific needs, capacities and learning difficulties of the different collectives involved in the Target Group (PwID and Supports).

ID-GAMING e-Training Tool (Intellectual Output 3)
The ID-GAMING e-Training Tool will be developed including a Web Based Game for playing the Quality of Life Training Game developed in I.O.1, with the supervision of trainers and supports or by themselves. In addition, ID-GAMING e-Training Tool will allow access to the Training Toolkit for those persons that are not directly playing QoLTG but are interested in playing ICT-SG with learning purposes. This access will be done through a search engine that will allow access to Training Toolkit’s Materials through key questions.

4 Multiplier Events (Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece) will be implemented on the application of ICT Serious Games to PwID for improving cognitive functions, and therefore, their Quality of Life involving stakeholders who will multiply the impact of the project

Dissemination Actions will be implemented targeting the sector of Intellectual Disability at national and European level as well as experts in the field of Serious Games.

During the project, the estimated impact will be
– 100 persons, including PwID and Supports, will directly improve their cognitive functions, and accordingly their Quality of Life in the Validation Pilot Actions.
– 120 stakeholders will participate in the Multiplier Events
– 2.000 persons, including PwID and Supports, and other Stakeholders will increase their awareness and knowledge about the relevance of CT-Serious Games for improve the cognitive functions, and QoL

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 297730 Eur

Project Coordinator

C.E.C.D. MIRA SINTRA – CENTRO DE EDUCACAO PARA O CIDADAO COM DEFICIENCIA CRL & Country: PT

Project Partners

• Consorzio Solidarietà Sociale Forlì-Cesena società cooperativa sociale
• ASOC COPAVA COORDINADORA DE RECURSOS DE ATENCIÓN A PERSONAS CON DIVERSIDAD FUNCIONAL INTELECTUAL DE LA COMUNIDAD VALENCIANA
• ARISTOTELIO PANEPISTIMIO THESSALONIKIS
• ASSOCIAZIONE ITALIANA PER L ASSISTENZA AGLI SPASTICI PROVINCIA DI BOLOGNA
• INESC ID – INSTITUTO DE ENGENHARIADE SISTEMAS E COMPUTADORES, INVESTIGACAO E DESENVOLVIMENTO EM LISBOA