The first of the HEART projects is being implemented with institutions from Greece, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy and Bulgaria. Project leader Prof. Grzegorz Granosik, explaining the importance of the topic, says:
So far, few projects in education involving modern technologies, including robots, have paid attention to adult education. Even fewer have addressed the subject of adults with disabilities. On the other hand, the educational potential of the robotics sector remains unknown in the adult education community. Our initiative aims to fill this gap and to bring together the education and robotics sectors.
The HEART project foresees activities targeting several groups related to adult education, primarily their teachers and professionals working with adult learners with disabilities, looking for innovative tools and supporting technologies. An international network of experts will also be established to mentor people from the above mentioned groups and university researchers working in the field of educational robotics.
A complementary in the area of school education is project Ready, Teady, Go! In this case, the activities are addressed to children with special educational needs aged 9-14, their tutors and broadly defined educational centres and NGOs. Prof. Grzegorz Granosik says
- In addition to the e-platform with training courses, the project will result in a mobile application with the avatar of the Teady bear supporting children's learning.
The coordinator of the project is Lodz University of Technology, while the partners are institutions from Poland, Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Lithuania.