The DigiStorID project, co-financed by the EU from the Erasmus + program, KA2 Strategic Partnerships, started in November 2018. It involves 6 partners from 6 different countries (Slovenia, Finland, Denmark, Italy, Iceland and Lithuania). The main purpose of the project is to develop an innovative learning approach – digital storytelling adapted to people with intellectual disabilities with an aim to deliver an innovative, empowering and fun tool for teachers/facilitators that work with intellectually disabled which will help them up-skill, understand and empower intellectually disabled persons. The term “digital storytelling” means a simple and creative process, through which people who have little or no experience working on a computer, acquire basic skills and they can tell a personal story through a short film. They can use images, sound, text, or any other material that exists in electronic form. Individuals can tell the story, present ideas, or express their views.
In the first phase of the project, all partners conducted intensive interviews with a small number of respondents to explore theirs perspectives/ views on needs, interests, motivation, abilities, basic skills and obstacles of people with intellectual disabilities and at the same time to examine the needs of the experts and the challenges they face in their work, in terms of adapting the digital storytelling methodology to people with intellectual disabilities. Four areas of research were identified among partners based on an internal discussion:
- Can we distinguish between different levels of intellectual disability/ different intellectual disabilities, and do we need to?
- Is there a need for Digital Storytelling (DS) for people with intellectual disabilities (ID)?
- How can we reach the highest degree of agency from our storytellers?
- Is it practically possible for institutions to implement DS in their program?
On the basis of the analysis of the data from the interviews, a report will be prepared, which will include the definition of the actual needs of the two target groups and the guidelines for adapting the methodology of digital storytelling to people with intellectual disabilities.
In September 2019, a five-day »train-the-trainer« workshop will be organised in Denmark for professionals working with people with intellectual disabilities how to to use the methodology of digital storytelling as a complementary method in the learning process.
