Impact

After this project was completed, 29 out of 36 students who originally started the project received ECDL certificates and became digitally literate, having access to information through ICT in a more efficient way. The success of the project lies in enabling blind and visually impaired people to become digitally literate and improve their lives as a result.  In order for  the ECDL programme to become technologically adapted for use by blind and visually impaired people, the first digitalized ECDL workbooks were created in Croatia. The ECDL-approved books and workbooks were also printed in Braille and the copyright transferred from the original publisher to HUPRT so that these can now be reprinted for future use by many more visually impaired and blind people. The infrastructure that has been put in place to have specialized ECDL training and test centres will be used by the Croatian Ministry for Health and Social Welfare to reach as many blind and visually impaired people in Croatia as possible.

After the project was completed, results from a survey carried out on the participants proved that there was a very high overall satisfaction with the project. Generally as more and more visually impaired and blind people in Croatia take ECDL trained courses they will be able to avail of the vast sources of information that exist in digital form to improve their daily lives, and further their careers. A certified ECDL  trainer, Andrej Lackovic, from the ALGEBRA Computer Training Centre, who  taught blind and visually impaired people for the first time during this project, pointed out that some of the technical adaptations that had to be made for blind people were challenging to teach with but that the support from HUPRT and HIZ, was a great asset. He will continue to train blind and visually impaired people to achieve ECDL certificates in the future.

Track record of sharing

The Croatian Ministry of Health and Social Welfare financially supported this project, and will continue to show support for the project in the future in order to reach as many blind and visually impaired people in Croatia as possible. HUPRT worked closely with ECDL Croatia throughout the project, in cooperation with HIZ. ECDL trainers and teachers were supplied through the ALGEBRA Computer Training Centre in Croatia also. HUPRT is an association, founded in 1991, that specializes in distributing and purchasing new technologies that can assist blind and visually impaired people in Croatia. ECDL Croatia is the national partner of the ECDL Foundation, a non -profit organisation that is the certifying authority for globally-recognised ECDL certification programmes. The mission of the ECDL Foundation is to enable proficient use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) that empowers individuals, organisations and society, through the development, promotion, and delivery of quality certification programmes throughout the world. The Croatian Library for the Blind was also involved in this project by providing books in Braille, to assist in teaching the students involved. 

Lessons learnt

• Blind and Visually Impaired people can achieve the same digital skills as seeing people. This is proven by the fact that 29 visually impaired and blind people were able to achieve the internationally recognised ECDL certificate;
• In providing blind and visually impaired people, with the necessary skills to be able to use technology, they benefit from an increased quality of life, more employment opportunities, the ability to work independently in orderfurther their careers and  enter higher education using ICT as a learning aid;
• Educational organisations can have a key part to play in tackling the social exclusion that a blind or visually impaired person may normally face. These organisations can adapt their course material and teaching methods to ensure that they are inclusive and they provide the same learning opportunity to all regardless of disability.