WAI-NOT, ICT for people with mental disabilities

Acronym of the case:

WAI-NOT

Web address of the case:

http://www.wai-not.be

Country of the case:

Belgium , Pan european

Posting Date:

5 November 2007

Last Edited Date:

08 June 2008

Author:

Dekelver Jan (K.H.Kempen - K.U.Leuven Association)

mental | disabilities | learning

Type of initiative

Project or service

Case Abstract

WAI-NOT is an Internet initiative offering tailored web based content for mentally disabled children and youngsters. The website presents a variety of content for all type of users: news items, games, music, content for learning, spare time, etc. In addition, registered users find information on work placement, contests, chat, discussions, guest books, an adapted email using pictograms and much more. Schools and organizations can also create their own websites through the portal. WAI-NOT supports the EU eInclusion policy by reducing the ICT gap for people with mental disabilities and by promoting the use of technologies among them to overcome exclusion.

Description of the case

Domain

eInclusion

Topic

ICT and Marginalised youth

Sector

Education, Science and Research

Start date - End date

January 2000 (Ongoing)

Date operational

January 2002

Target Users

People with disability

Target Users Description

Young people with mental disabilties and learning difficulties, their teachers, coaches and parents.

Scope

International | National

Status

Operation

Language(s)

English | French | Dutch | Polish | Portuguese

Policy Context and Legal Framework

WAI-NOT has expanded the use of ICT in education for people with mental disabilities. This is an answer in line with the i2010 policy aims of the EU ministers of Education and in line with the Riga declaration.

WAI-NOT supports the eInclusion policy by reducing the ICT gap for people with mental disabilities and by promoting the use of technologies in this group to overcome exclusion. WAI-NOT answers to the problem of digital illiteracy by lowering the necessary skills needed to get access to ICT. This also is in line with the i2010 policy.

Project Size and Implementation

Type of initiative

Training and education

Overall Implementation approach

Partnerships between administration and/or private sector and/or non-profit sector

Technology choice

Mainly (or only) open standards

Project size

Implementation: €500-999,000

Yearly cost:

€49-299,000

Implementation and Management Approach

The WAI-NOT Foundation is a not for profit organization that has built a strong partnership with the Katholieke Hogeschool Kempen (KHKempen), part of the K.U. Leuven Association. The organization has been recognized by the Ministry of Education in Flanders, which has allocated two staff members to the foundation.

The WAI-NOT Foundation provides for start-up support to schools and organizations and continually develops new content for the website. KHKempen acts as a research partner and is active in different EU projects.

The WAI-NOT experience proves that the introduction of ICT for people with mental disabilities is not obvious. Special education schools, day care centres and organizations working with the target group seldom have an ICT implementation strategy. For that purpose, WAI-NOT has developed strategy documents and training for schools and organizations.

These WAI-NOT courses and hand-on sessions are supported by the WAI-NOT ambassadors: members of the target group demonstrate WAI-NOT and talk about their own experiences. This has proven to be a very strong marketing tool, not only for target group members but also for audiences of the intermediate target group such as teachers and coaches, parents and stakeholders in the area of ICT and inclusion.

Technology solution

The WAI-NOT Internet environment is based on an extensive study of the needs and skills of mentally disabled people. The created products were evaluated by different target audiences.

The WAI-NOT environment takes into account the different abilities of the users by offering three different entry-levels. For each level, supporting tools were introduced, such as spoken text and pictograms. WAI-NOT offers a public part, accessible for everybody and a â€œprotectedâ€ environment for registered users.

For people with severe mental handicap, written text is replaced by audio support and pictures. The messages are clear and simple and navigation is made very straightforward, structured and easy. The user registers into the site, using a visual username and visual password. Content of this website is updated using a CMS.

WAI-NOT provides organisations with an Internet space where they can present and update local information, embedded in the WAI-NOT adapted environment, using very simple templates.

The WAI-NOT e-mail client allows sending messages using pictures and short text. It offers the target group a communication tool that, in their perception, is equivalent to standard email. The online administration tools support the management the whole system.

Impact, innovation and results

Impact

Following results have been achieved:
- A website accessible for people with mental disabilities, tailored to the level of disability. WAI-NOT has created over 1,000 content blocks on five major topics: news, games, spare time, living together, and special themes. In addition, WAI-NOT has created an adapted e-mail client, chat box, discussion forum and guest book.
- Training courses for teachers and coaches have been developed and distributed in schools in Belgium, The Netherlands and Poland.
- ICT implementation strategy documents have been developed and promoted in special education schools in Belgium, Poland and The Netherlands
- Implementation of WAI-NOT in over 100 schools in Belgium and an unknown number in other countries.
- Guidelines and services for website developers, aiming at the target group, are available.

The impact can be estimated at different levels. For the individual end user, WAI-NOT brings ICT to a reachable level. This not only brings the benefits of ICT but also adds a lot to the self esteem and the feeling of being in control to the end user. Our WAI-NOT ambassadors are the living proof of this.

WAI-NOT has also offered special schools and organisations a set of tools that make ICT an instrument that can be integrated in the learning environment of the target group. At the macro level, WAI-NOT has put the theme of â€œPeople with mental disabilities and ICTâ€ on the agenda of several forums. While ICT was not on the priority list of organisations working with the target group at the beginning of the century, today the theme has come more to the forefront of the inclusion debate. WAI-NOT most certainly has added value in this.

Innovation:
The innovation of this initiative does not come from the new technology itself, but from the fact that established technology is being made available for a target group that has been deprived from it for too many years. People with mental disabilities for sure want to be part of the Information Society and use Internet for communication purposes.

The WAI-NOT project has built on the existing WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative) guidelines and has elaborated them, taken into account the abilities of the target group. People with mental disabilities now can log into a site using a username and password, use e-mail, use a guest book, take part in a chat box and publish a story on the Internet.

Track record of sharing

WAI-NOT was the central topic of an accepted Minerva (90652-CP-1-2001-1-BE-MINERVA-M) and Comenius project (118259-CP-1-2004-1-Comenius-C21) and is a best practice example on the www.elearningeuropa.info website. It is also an IST-prize nominee (2005).

WAI-NOT works closely with higher education institutions in Europe. Students from different higher education institutes make contributions to WAI-NOT in the framework of their thesis and final work. Students working on WAI-NOT have received the CERA-award for their work.

Since 2007, students from two Southern Russian universities visit us for a 6 months exchange program and work on the WAI-NOT website.

WAI-NOT has demonstrated clearly that there is a need to develop adapted strategies to enhance ICT competences of the target group. This gave the inspiration for the EasyIT Leonardo project. (133948-LLP-2007-PL-LMP) This project will develop an ICT certification environment, designed for people with mental disabilities, enabling tailored guidance, training and adapted support for continued development of ICT skills.

WAI-NOT is a partner in a new initiative that will expand the AnySurfer label. Anysurfer is the Belgian version of the WCAG guidelines. AnySurfer gives a label to accessible websites and is recognized by the Belgian government. Anysurfer is planning to expand the guidelines with special attention to different target groups: people with visual, hearing, mental, physical or reading disabilities. This will result in practical additional guidelines to develop websites designed for people with specific disabilities.

Lessons learnt

Lesson 1 - ICT is not for everybody. The ICT-gap remains wide if you look at the group of people with mental disabilities. Very few initiatives offer content and communication tools that are accessible for this target group. The disability is of such nature that is seems incompatible with the requested skills and on top of that, people with mental disabilities will hardly ever take the stand to defend their case.

Lesson 2 - ICT really brings added value to the inclusion of people with mental disabilities. WAI-NOT has clearly proven that people with mental disabilities can get a lot of benefit from the use of adapted ICT solutions. Being able to surf, find information, listen to news, play games, send e-mails, etc. not only connects one to the Information Society: the self esteem of people with mental disabilities being able to access these options increases tremendously.

Lesson 3 - Sustainability of eInclusion initiatives remains a problem. The target group of people with mental disabilities is not directly accessible through a conventional business plan. It is not easy to find ways to fund these services. WAI-NOT is constantly putting effort in looking for new ways to make the project sustainable.

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