It is one of the international projects in which the Special Education and Pedagogy Laboratory participated, funded by the Erasmus+ Sport program (now Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnership Key Action 2 – KA2), which enables organizations to increase the quality and relevance of their activities, to develop and strengthen their partner networks, and to increase their capacity to work jointly transnationally.
Duration: 12.01.2024- 11.30.2027
Coordinator
Italian Judo Wrestling Karate Martial Arts Federation (Italy)
Partner institutions:
- Sport Evolution Alliance crl (Portugal)
- Universitat Ramon Llull Fundacio (Spain)
- European Judo Union (Austria)
- University of Rome “Foro Italico” (Italy)
Objective
KATAUTISM is an innovative project aimed at promoting the social and cultural inclusion of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Research has shown that participation in judo can provide both social and health benefits for people with ASD. Based on this scientific evidence, the project was initiated with the goal of making judo practice accessible to children with ASD in inclusive school settings.
The project will promote a specific training strategy, a method of communication (through a children’s comic strip), and define best practices through targeted research, thus helping to improve the quality of life for people with autism and their families.
The project involves training judo masters on adapted activities in order to expand their skills. The training will be provided by the Universities of Rome “Foro Italico” and Ramon Llull University. The course will later be available on the European Judo Union platform, thus ensuring the preparation of future masters.
Impact
The program will involve 30 classes and more than 600 children, including 30 with ASDs, who will directly participate in judo activities. In addition, more than 50 instructors will receive direct training during the project, while more than 200 future instructors will be able to train through the virtual platform.