Identity and Diversity Picture Book Collections Erasmus Project

Project Title

Identity and Diversity Picture Book Collections

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 school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Inclusion – equity; Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning

Project Summary

IDPBC was a transnational effort to compile international picture book collections, approaches and activities that address three issues of great importance to contemporary students and teachers across the globe: Inclusion, Diversity and Identity. Picture books have been proved to be extremely valuable educational tools, bringing multiple learning benefits to diverse groups of learners. Educationalists have repeatedly shown how reading visual narratives can enhance children’s understanding of their own identities and celebrating difference. IDPBC strived to empower children from disadvantaged backgrounds to see themselves in the curriculum, enable all children to function within diverse/multicultural educational environments, and prepare teachers to teach diverse learners. More than 10,000 individuals were directly or indirectly reached by the project, including children and parents, teachers and teacher trainers, curriculum developers and policy makers.

IDPBC was built on the approaches developed in the projects that preceded it, while also breaked new ground. Like the projects that have already been carried out, this new project was capitalized on the educational affordances of powerful visual narratives, by compiling a collection of carefully selected picture books and designing relevant educational material. At the same instance, IDPBC differed in that, unlike EPBC or EPBC II, the new project did not collect stories that represent specific EU states, cultures or languages. While these early projects are valuable, and are still being utilized by educators, the IDPBC project was innovative in the sense that it asks children and educators to be inspired by powerful visual stories in order to reflect on their own experiences and ideas about identity, inclusion and diversity.

The central objectives of IDPBC were:
– To compile a collection of international picture books in a range of languages, which can be used in classrooms for exploration and negotiation of identity, inclusion and diversity;
– To develop, test and disseminate a series of picture-book-based approaches and activities that will support inclusion and diversity and ultimately reduce disparities in learning outcomes of disadvantaged learners;
– To publish and disseminate a guide that supports practitioners in integrating IDPBC picture books in the curriculum, forming their own picture book collections and activities and engaging diverse students, parents and the community;
– To provide training and professional development to pre- and in-service educators, equipping them with the necessary knowledge, attitudes and competences to successfully manage and support diversity through visual stories;
– To provide an OER platform that enables pre- and in-service educators to develop networks of practitioners who integrate picture books in the curriculum to make teaching and learning more inclusive and accommodating.

Main outputs developed:
– Collection of international picture books “IDPBC Annotated Bibliographic Catalogue”
– Picture-book-based approaches and activities “IDPBC Didactic Units” (5 Didactic Units)
– Implementation guide for practitioners “IDPBC Guide for Enhancing Inclusive Practices”
– Training to pre- and in-service educators “Online Courses” (5 Modules)
– Open Educational Resources platform

Children, teachers, student teachers and parents were educated and guided through activities that value diversity, combat racism and xenophobia and enhance the child’s self-image and self–efficacy. As the IDPBC project aimed to affect in a positive manner pre-primary and primary school pupils who feel or are considered to be “different,” in addition to migrant children, other categories of children will also benefit from IDPBC. These categories include: Romas and children with minority backgrounds; children at risk; children in care; children with same sex parents; adopted children; displaced children; and others. Finally, since learning to function in diverse environments and reflecting on one’s identity and stances towards difference is essential for every child growing up in a contemporary society, all pre-primary and primary school pupils in Europe and elsewhere could and still can potentially benefit from the IDPBC stories, activities and educational approaches.

Coordinator: Diversity Development Group. Partners: CENTRE FOR ADVANCEMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY LTD-CARDET, Cyprus; UNIVERSITATEA DIN PITESTI, Romania; DOUKAS SCHOOL, Greece; INNOVADE LTD, Cyprus; INSTITUTO POLITÉCNICO DE CASTELO BRANCO, Portugal.

Project web site: http://diversitytales.com/en/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 137303 Eur

Project Coordinator

VSI DIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT GROUP & Country: LT

Project Partners

• DOUKA EKPAIDEFTIRIA AE – PALLADION LYKEION EKFPAIDEUTHRIA DOUKA
• UNIVERSITATEA DIN PITESTI
• INNOVADE LI LTD
• CENTRE FOR ADVANCEMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY LTD-CARDET
• INSTITUTO POLITECNICO DE CASTELO BRANCO