The fourth edition of the Initiation Course in Deafblindness

Between March 18th and April 19th, 2024, we organized, online, the fourth edition of the Initiation Course in Deafblindness.

The training course had both a synchronous component, with weekly meetings on the Zoom platform, and an asynchronous one, on our e-learning platform, http://www.cursuri.surdocecitate.ro.

For five weeks, the 25 participants - teachers, students, therapists, social workers - learned about the historical context of deafblindness, its main causes, how DB people communicate, important principles regarding orientation and mobility, personal and social development, intervention methods, and the specifics of deafblindness in children and adults.

Every Monday evening, for two hours, the team of trainers addressed these topics with great dedication, offering participants concrete examples from their practical experience, working tools, answers to questions, and encouragement regarding possible obstacles they might encounter in their activity.

Three young people with deafblindness received "Vasile Adamescu" scholarships

For this edition of the Initiation Course in Deafblindness, we offered the opportunity to access the course for free, with the "Vasile Adamescu" scholarship, to six participants, including three young people with deafblindness.

"I had many realizations during the course. I liked the case studies very much, as well as the gentle and warm way the trainers presented. It was as if I lived through the experiences and stories along with them. Listening to them, I realized how many children's souls they have helped and how many parents' souls they have soothen." - O.E.

"I would recommend the course to both teachers and parents"

We concluded this new edition with great confidence that together we can be a real support for people with deafblindness and their families. In total, in the four editions of the initiation course organized online since 2021, we had 110 curious and dedicated participants, joining the over 300 specialists in deafblindness we have trained in our 23 years of activity.

We would like to give special thanks to the three trainers, dedicated professionals and dear friends of our foundation: special education teacher Eva Oprea, psychologist Gabriela Jianu, assistant professor Ioana Tufar, Ph.D.

In the coming period, we are preparing a more complex course, approved by the Ministry of Education and addressed to all those who wish to specialize and deepen their knowledge in this niche field.

"Thank you for sharing a small part of your experience with us. Thank you for your time and availability in providing us with useful materials and resources. For me, at the beginning of my work with children with deafblindness/multiple disabilities, it meant a lot to meet authentic and dedicated professionals. I would recommend this training course to those who work with children and are just starting out, as well as to parents who have children with deafblindness, to understand their needs and especially how they can help them." - C.C.

"I was glad to attend the Initiation Course in Deafblindness with  a scholarship. I found myself in many of the case studies presented. The practical examples brought into discussion made the course sessions easy to follow, very interesting, and concrete." - B.S.