Accessible education systems with audio and tactile inclusive materials

Bergama Belediyesi Rahmi Yeşilsoy Engelliler Merkezi, Turkey: Produces tactile educational materials for visually impaired children. Materials used by 3,000 students and teachers in Turkey, and over 2,600 in Africa and Pakistan.

Bergama Belediyesi Rahmi Yeşilsoy Engelliler Merkezi, a disability centre affiliated with its local municipality and located in western Turkey, produces tactile educational and game materials for children with visual impairments. The materials combine different textures, Braille writings, and audio signals activated by touch. Since 2018 the materials have been used in schools by some 3,000 students and teachers across Turkey, as well as more than 2,000 in nine countries in Africa and 600 in Pakistan.

Problems Targeted

The scarcity of materials catering to the educational and recreational needs of persons with visual impairments has been a constant challenge.

Solution, Innovation and Impact

The Bergama Belediyesi Rahmi Yeşilsoy Engelliler Merkezi, a municipal-affiliated disability centre in western Turkey, focuses on the development of educational materials, tactile mind games, and inclusive toys specifically designed to cater to the learning needs of visually impaired individuals. The centre has developed a low-cost material whose texture and surfaces can be easily adapted, enabling visually impaired individuals to use their tactile sense. Magnetic buttons beneath these textures trigger audio signals upon touch, enhancing comprehension. Braille writings further contribute to accessibility. This project has also facilitated the inclusion of sighted and visually impaired children within the same educational framework, enabling collaborative learning experiences from an early age. After starting a social responsibility project in 2019, the organization took the tactile materials, tactile toys, and white canes to visually impaired children in various countries of the world. In 2019, 1,500 visually impaired children were trained in Burundi, Rwanda, and Sudan, and in 2023 some 800 children in Uganda were equipped with the materials. With the growing number of new materials, production has been upgraded from hand-made to 3D-printing. In workshops called Inclusive Accessible Modelling interested parties can also learn how to produce those materials themselves.

Funding, Outlook and Transferability

The Bergama Disability Centre is a non-profit organization, using a building donated by a philanthropist. Based on a contract signed between Bergama Municipality and Bergama District Directorate of National Education, all expenses required for the workshop are met from the revenues of Bergama Municipality. Donations are made to workshops by philanthropists, who also donate raw materials and white walking stick needed for the materials produced. This enables the centre to share all its materials for free and to provide all trainings and workshops also free of charge. (Awardee 2024)

Pictures

By 2023, the tactile educational and game materials had been used in eleven countries.

By 2023, the tactile educational and game materials had been used in eleven countries.

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