Reducing the Educational Gap for migrants and refugees in EU countries with highly relevant e-learning resources offering strong social belonging Erasmus Project

Project Title

Reducing the Educational Gap for migrants and refugees in EU countries with highly relevant e-learning resources offering strong social belonging

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 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Access for disadvantaged; Gender equality / equal opportunities; Integration of refugees

Project Summary

The innovative resources developed in the ReGap project provide opportunities for migrants and refugees to feel a sense of social inclusion as they identify with digital stories of the different characters portrayed in the resources. The inclusion in the learning environment of the resources constitutes a necessary precondition for migrant and refugee success in online anytime anywhere learning. The knowledge and skills developed as the online resources completed supports the societal inclusion of the migrants and refugees: they have a greater chance to be successful in employment and education sectors, along with enhanced understanding of gender cultures and legal and citizens rights, as well as in access to use of health and social services as required.

Reducing the Educational Gap for migrants and refugees in EU countries (ReGap) was launched in 2017. A year which saw the arrival of 2.4 million non-EU immigrants in EU countries, and more than 800,000 people were granted citizenship. The challenge has and always will be to offer meaningful, accessible and sustainable inclusion in employment, education, health and social protection services, along with an accompanying personal sense of mutual belonging and well-being shared by new arrivals and host populations. Central in this endeavour is the need to build mutual understandings of different cultures, languages, gender practices and histories.

Many challenges are faced by migrants and refugees to Europe, such as language barriers, knowledge of labour markets, limited access to health care and social protection systems and disconnection between law and practice. Also, lack of digital literacy is an obstacle for many refugees and migrants, at the same time as digital technology and Internet have turned out to be promising tools for education for this target group.

ReGap developed and trialled seven open access e-learning courses that are culturally and gender sensitive, using examples and adapted specific to each country in which the resource(s) are offered: Macedonia, Italy, Portugal and Norway. The courses met needs in employment, health, education, social security, gender and knowledge of justice systems and citizenship regulations. Each included an introductory component to create socially shared participant identity and belonging and enhanced ICT skills. The courses can be fully online or blended with face-to-face activities. Focus groups and trials with migrants, refugees, teachers and professionals were completed (18 focus groups with 101 participants, trials with 323 participants in total). An instruction video and handbook for teachers and professionals has also been produced. All resources – courses and instructional materials – have been translated into five langugages (English, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese and Macedonian) and adapted to the situation and regulations in each of the partner countries.

The ReGap methodology has built knowledge, skills and created social inclusion and well-being through digital storytelling; integrating in particularly migrants and refugees’ own stories as part of the learning resources. A key objective has been to listen to migrants and refugees who have co-participated in the development of these stories. This methodology has raised motivation to enrol and complete these courses and confirms the importance of participants feeling social inclusion and wellbeing as they identify with the portrayal of the digital stories, issues, characters and important knowledge and skills communicated.

The ReGap project partners are nationally and internationally renowned for their work in the field of adult learning and the development of innovative e-learning for different stakeholders. They are Centre for lifelong learning at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences (coordinator), recognised for the delivery of sustainable and cutting edge online resources; the Department of Human Sciences at LUMSA University, Italy, who are educational researchers and multimedia learning specialists; the Centre for Research and Intervention in Education in the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences (FPCEUP) at the University of Porto, Portugal, are experts in learning science and community oriented project delivery and the Association Community Development Institute (CDI) in Macedonia are an NGO who have been heavily involved in migrant and refugee projects for many years.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 278283,8 Eur

Project Coordinator

HOGSKOLEN I INNLANDET & Country: NO

Project Partners

• UNIVERSIDADE DO PORTO
• LIBERA UNIVERSITA MARIA SS. ASSUNTA DI ROMA
• ZDRUZENIE INSTITUT ZA RAZVOJ NA ZAEDNICATA