Author: admin 18/03/2026

On March 18th, 2026, the final event for the dissemination of the project results was held at the Boris Hristov House of Culture in Plovdiv under the title “NATIONAL FORUM “Digital Competencies of the Modern Teacher”. The event was organized by Plovdiv University “Paisiy Hilendarski”, Faculty of Pedagogy, Department of “Pedagogy and Educational Management”, Union of Bulgarian Teachers at the Confederation of Bulgarian Teachers’ Unions and “Bulgarian Inclusion Support Team”. The forum is funded within the framework of the Erasmus+ programme of the European Commission under grant agreement 2023-1-BG01-KA220-HED-000155494.

Over 120 pedagogical specialists, principals of secondary and vocational schools and kindergartens, representatives of the Central Educational Service for Primary and Secondary Education and the Regional Center for Primary and Secondary Education, psychologists, resource teachers, students of pedagogical specialties, parents of children with special educational needs from the cities of Plovdiv, Pazardzhik, Sofia and Stara Zagora took an active part.

The event was opened by Prof. Dr. Dora Levterova-Gadzhalova – project coordinator, Director of the “Department for Qualification and Professional Development of Pedagogical Specialists”, Head of the Department of Pedagogy and Management of Education”. She outlined the overall framework for the implementation of the project, and also made a detailed analysis of the modern digital competencies of the modern teacher.

A welcome address from the management of Plovdiv University “Paisiy Hilendarski” was delivered by Prof. Dr. Kirilka Tagareva – Head of the Department of Psychology and Deputy Dean for Research and Project Activities at the Faculty of Pedagogy.

A special guest of the forum was Prof. Dr. Galin Tsokov – Director of the Institute of Education at the Ministry of Education and Science. He emphasized the extremely important role of the “IM-PRO-IN-DE” project and the relevance of its results and implemented trainings for additional qualification of teachers. Prof. Tsokov shared that the project and its results have also contributed to formulating the framework of the Ministry’s new program for additional qualification of teachers in the field of digitalization and artificial intelligence, which will start in the fall of 2026. and will cover 61,000 teachers.

Mr. Andrean Lazarov, Executive Director of the “Bulgarian Inclusive Support Team” and project partner, presented in detail all the results of the project, as well as summarized the analyzed data on the impact of the trainings conducted in Bulgaria, Spain, Portugal and Turkey, which covered 955 current and future teachers (with a target value of 350).

According to the surveyed participants (teachers) in the pilot phase of the project, the learning process has become more efficient in terms of time and resources. Teachers better personalize learning to the needs of students, including those with SEN. The project has provided a new way of thinking that will allow them to continue adapting to new technologies in the future. The general, inclusive and subject-specific aspects of technologies are merged and operationalized in a fully inclusive educational practice. The use of inclusive instructional design in digital learning has increased the choice of options for personalized learning paths.

The added value of the project results and the trainings provided have contributed to:

• digital transformation through the development of digital readiness, resilience and capacity, including supporting ICT capabilities;
• effective communication that helps learners achieve learning goals;
• a story behind each design – clear content and messages;
• delivering the right message to their students;
• change in students’ behavior – from recipients of information to collaborators in the content;
• inspiring students to act and achieve more than expected;
• motivating students to acquire more knowledge.

Ms. Petranka Kaloferova, Regional Coordinator of the Bulgarian Teachers’ Union, on behalf of Dr. Yanka Takeva (Chairwoman of the Bulgarian Teachers’ Union), summarized the feedback from the teachers who participated in the pilot phase. She emphasized the high level of satisfaction of the Union with their participation in this initiative.

Within the framework of the event’s program, a discussion was also held to share good practices from the participants in the pilot phase, as well as impressions of principals, educational experts and pedagogical specialists. The possibilities for ensuring the sustainability of the project results were also discussed.

In the final part, thanks to the successful cooperation of the “Bulgarian Inclusive Support Team” with the “Kahoot” platform, one of the participants in the hall received, at random, a GOLDEN VOUCHER for full access to all functionalities of the platform for the entire educational organization. The voucher was won by the team of the “Zdravets” Kindergarten.

The “IM-PRO-IN-DE” project team thanks all participants and partners who took an active part in the national forum. Follow our page for more information.