VR4SEN

Partners: Window Romania Association from Romania EduLActiva from Lithuania Main Aim: To improve the social inclusion, communication skills, and self-confidence of young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) through the use of Virtual Reality (VR) as an innovative educational and social inclusion tool.

Target Groups:

Direct Target Group: Young People with Special Educational Needs (SEN) Young People with SEN

Description: Young people aged approximately 14–25 with hearing impairments, autism spectrum conditions, learning difficulties, mild intellectual disabilities, psychosocial challenges, or other special educational needs.

Role: Participate in immersive VR activities that help them practice communication, social interaction, teamwork, and everyday life situations in a safe and supportive environment.

Secondary Target Group: Youth Workers and Educators Youth Workers Description: Professionals working directly with young people with SEN in NGOs, schools, youth centres, and community organisations.

Role: Learn how to integrate Virtual Reality into their daily youth work, develop inclusive learning experiences, and support social inclusion through innovative digital methods.

Indirect Target Group

Schools, NGOs and Community Organisations

Description: Organisations working with young people with disabilities and fewer opportunities.

Role: Benefit from the open-access VR Toolkit, practical methodologies, and project results that can be integrated into their own educational and youth work activities.

Objectives:

• Improve the social inclusion, communication skills, and self-confidence of at least 40 young people with SEN through immersive Virtual Reality activities.

• Train 20 youth workers from Romania and Lithuania to effectively use Virtual Reality as an innovative tool for inclusive youth work.

• Develop and publish a practical VR Toolkit containing social scenarios, recommended VR applications, implementation guidelines, and best practices for working with SEN youth.

• Increase awareness of Virtual Reality as an inclusive educational tool by reaching at least 100 stakeholders through dissemination activities and by sharing the toolkit with organisations across Europe. Activities

1 .International Training on Virtual Reality

Description:A practical four-day international training focused on developing youth workers’ competencies in using Virtual Reality for inclusive youth work with young people with Special Educational Needs. Location: Lithuania Duration: 4 days Participants: 6 youth workers from each partner organisation (12 participants in total)

Key Topics:

• Introduction to Virtual Reality technologies • VR equipment setup and troubleshooting • Creating VR content and 360° experiences • Developing social inclusion activities using VR • Ethical and accessible use of VR for SEN youth 2. International Workshop on Developing VR Scenarios

Description:A collaborative workshop where partners design practical Virtual Reality scenarios that address communication, confidence building, teamwork, and social interaction for young people with SEN. Location: Romania Duration: 3 days Participants: 4 youth workers from each partner organisation (8 participants in total)

Activities:

• Analysis of real-life case studies • Identification of key social skills for SEN youth • Development of VR social scenarios • Evaluation of existing VR applications • Planning local implementation 3. Development of the VR Toolkit

Description: Creation of a comprehensive digital toolkit supporting youth workers in implementing Virtual Reality activities for young people with SEN. Responsible Partners: Window Romania Association and EduLActiva Content:

• Project overview • Partner expertise • Ready-to-use VR social scenarios • Recommended VR applications • Best practices for inclusive VR implementation • Practical guidelines for youth workers

4. Local VR Camps Description: Three-day local activities organised in both partner countries where young people with SEN participate in immersive VR experiences combined with outdoor team-building activities. Locations: Romania and Lithuania Duration: 3 days per camp Participants: Approximately 20 young people with SEN per country (40 participants in total) Activities: •Introduction to Virtual Reality •Social interaction exercises in VR •Teamwork and problem-solving activities •Outdoor games and team-building •Reflection and evaluation sessions

5. Dissemination Events

Description: Public events presenting the project results, VR Toolkit, and demonstrations of Virtual Reality activities developed during the project.

Locations: Romania and Lithuania

Participants: Approximately 50 participants per event

Activities: •Presentation of project achievements

•Demonstration of VR scenarios

•Toolkit presentation

•Networking with schools, NGOs, youth organisations, and community stakeholders

Expected Outcomes

• 20 youth workers trained in the use of Virtual Reality for inclusive youth work.

• 40 young people with SEN improve their communication, confidence, teamwork, and social interaction skills.

• A practical, user-friendly VR Toolkit freely available for organisations across Europe.

• A collection of practical VR scenarios and recommended VR applications for working with young people with SEN.

• Increased awareness of innovative digital inclusion methods among youth organisations, schools, educators, and stakeholders.