Examining opportunities of the deaf and hard of hearing

- We wanted to attract attention to the opportunities of deaf and hard of hearing persons in different countries, for example when it comes to entering the labor market.

So says Daiva Burkauskiene, initiator of the project and teacher at the Educational Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing of Lithuania in Vilnius. The aim of the project has been to provide pupils and teachers with the opportunity to reflect on what life as deaf or hard of hearing looks like in different countries. But also to learn more about the sign language of other countries, as well as their living conditions and cultures in general.

Several exchanges have been carried through. A group of pupils from the school in Vilnius visited the Norwegian cooperation school Slåtthaug videregående skole in Bergen. Pupils from Slåtthaug came to see the Swedish partner Tullängsskolan in Örebro, and pupils from the Danish Nyborgskolen went to the Educational Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Vilnius.

- The Lithuanian pupils found the visit to Bergen very interesting. It is something that has really kept them motivated in their further studies, says Daiva.

- Before the visit, they prepared presentation on their school and the Lithuanian culture. They tried to translate some parts to Norwegian sign language or to international sign language, to make the content clearer to the youths in Norway.

Daiva Burkauskiene thinks that the project has given several valuable insights. For the pupils, the meetings with young people from different countries have given an opportunity to exchange experiences. It has also improved their communication skills. The teachers involved found it a challenge and an experience to teach pupils from two different cultures.

- Personally, it has also meant a lot to us to be given such good contacts with the teachers and pupils from Norway, Sweden and Denmark.

In what way have you disseminated the experiences from the project?

- We have been working a lot with presentations and reports on what we have done. In that way, teachers and pupils who have not taken part in the project themselves have got to know more about everyday life of deaf and hard of hearing persons in other parts of northern Europe. Also, articles about the exchange have been published in Lithuanian teachers’ magazines and on the website of the Lithuanian Deaf Association.

Text: Karin Andrén, The International Programme Office for Education and Training