ProHear – Improving the Employability of People with Hearing Impairments

Project description:

ProHear project is developed within Erasmus + Programme, Key Action 2: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices and is a 2-year project starting from November 2017 and ending in October 2019. The project is a strategic partnership consisting of 6 organizations from four European countries – Poland, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Iceland.

Since the persons with disabilities are amongst the most disadvantaged groups in the labour market and “only 20% of persons with disabilities are employed” and “among those who are working many are underemployed as they are not paid a decent wage, work below their capabilities and/or temporary contracts and have poor career prospective” the proHear project addresses the employability of people with hearing impairments. Thus, the aim of the project is to provide integrated support tailored to the needs and specificities of people with hearing impairments through the development of innovative training tools and materials in order to increase motivation and self-awareness, create incentives for acquiring new soft skills necessary for efficient job search and employment performance and thus promote efficient integration of hearing impaired people into employment.

The project is aimed at the following specific target groups:

• Direct beneficiaries: people with hearing impairments, differentiated by their employment status (inactive/ unemployed/ employed);
• Indirect beneficiaries: stakeholders (associations of people with hearing impairments; other civil society organisations, active in the field of social inclusion of people with disabilities;  higher education institutions, vocational training centres, VET professionals, academics, etc., working with / in the field of support of hearing impaired people; companies and employers of people with disabilities; organisations, engaged in rehabilitation of hearing impaired people; public employment services, incl. career guidance counsellors; public social services, incl. social workers; social partners; policy makers at EU/national/regional/local level).

Intellectual outputs expected from the project:

• IO1 – proHear Survey and Gap Analysis: to be conducted by means of desk research and interviews with hearing impaired persons and relevant stakeholders, incl. actual/prospective employers of such individuals.
• IO2 – Innovative Training Content: curriculum and training content elaborated, based on the Gap Analysis’ results – a modular training course including:

Module 1: Self- and opportunities awareness

Module 2: Job searching skills and channels

Module 3: Preparation of a Europass CV and cover letter

Module 4: Preparation for a job interview

Module 5: Soft skills on the workplace

Module 6: Technical solutions on the workplace for people with hearing impairments and their employers

• IO3 – proHear Interactive e-Learning Platform: practically-oriented training course and trainers/counsellors network for experts working with hearing impaired people
• IO4 – Empowerment Kit: for further sustainability and efficiency of the training activities

The proHear project envisages the organization of Pilot training workshop, Local info days and Local career days in all partner country and a Final conference in Poland.

The project partnership consists of:

• University of Social Science, Poland (project coordinator);
• Polish Association of the Deaf Lodz Department, Poland;
• The Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria, Bulgaria;
• European Center for Quality Ltd, Bulgaria;        
• Valakupiai Rehabilitation Centre, Lithuania;
• The National Hearing and Speech Institute of Iceland
• The University of Iceland, Iceland