Professional mobility at the German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted (DBSV)

11.06.2026.

Fehér fal és ablak előtt három nő állva és egy férfi ülve csoportképen mosolyog.

From May 27 to 29, 2026, as part of the Erasmus+ mobility program, two collegues from Bárczi made a professional visit to Berlin to the German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted (Deutscher Blinden- und Sehbehindertenverband e.V., DBSV). The mobility program was attended by Dr. Judit Gombás, lecturer at the Institute for for the Metholodogy of Special Needs Education and Rehabilitation in the field of pedagogy for the visually impaired, and Dr. Judit Csákvári, a part-time lecturer at the Institute for the Psychology of Special Needs.

On behalf of the organization, Reiner Delgado, Head of Social Affairs and also Chair of the European Blind Union’s Braille Working Group, welcomed the delegation. Judit Gombás is also a member of the working group. The faculty has multiple ties to the DBSV: this year, the organization, as consortium leader, submitted an Erasmus+ grant proposal developed in collaboration with four countries, aimed at researching the most advanced methods of tactile graphics. ELTE’s Bárczi Gusztáv Faculty of Special Education is participating in the project as a higher education partner. Those involved are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the proposal. During the visit to Berlin, the focus was primarily on issues related to the proposal’s technical aspects.

In a group photo, three women are standing and one man is sitting in front of a white wall and window, all smiling.

During the mobility program, they had the opportunity to learn about the tactile books developed by German colleagues, Reiner Delgado and Eva Cambeiro Andrade. These are inclusive storybooks designed for use by blind and visually impaired children and adults, as well as sighted individuals. An important consideration in their development was the cultivation of complex skills: for example, learning orientation and directions, teaching Braille, and, last but not least, providing entertainment. What makes these tactile storybooks special is that they can be reproduced, allowing the organization to achieve wider distribution.

Further information on currently available publications can be found at the link below (in German): https://www.dbsv.org/aktuellebuecher.html

Az első képen két nő egy színes tapintható mesekönyv mellett ül, az egyik nő a Braille feliratokat olvassa. A másik képen egy nő tapintható mesekönyvet lapozgat és a nyomtatott feliratokat olvassa.

In the first photo, two women are sitting next to a colorful tactile storybook; one of them is reading the Braille text. In the second photo, a woman is flipping through a tactile storybook and reading the printed text.

As part of the professional program, participants also toured the permanent exhibition at the accessible Berlinnische Galerie, with the assistance of DBSV experts. For visually impaired visitors, audio guides and tactile guide strips—which include orientation information—help with navigation. The permanent exhibition features seven tactile reproductions of paintings, as well as audio descriptions of 17 works. Expanding the number of tactile reproductions is significantly hindered by the high cost of production, which is a common challenge worldwide.

Az első képen egy nő egy színes absztrakt formákból álló festmény tapintható változatát tapogatja, a háttérben az eredeti festmény van a falon. A második képen egy fekete ruhában lévő táncosnőt ábrázoló festmény tapintható változatát tapogatja két látássérült ember keze, kezük ügyében fehér bot.

In the first photo, a woman is touching a tactile version of a painting composed of colorful abstract shapes, with the original painting hanging on the wall in the background. In the second photo, the hands of two visually impaired people, each holding a white cane, are touching a tactile version of a painting depicting a dancer in a black dress.

During the visit, they also viewed a special tactile map depicting downtown Belin on a 1:2000 scale. The most significant buildings can also be felt in larger scale. Navigation is aided by information points that can be played back via a smart device. The map helps a visually impaired person understand directions and spatial relationships within the city.

Fekete alapon szürke tapintható méretarányos, hosszúkás téglalap alakú makett Berlinről egy kiállítóteremben, a háttérben látássérült érdeklődök tapintanak meg egy épületet.

A gray, tactile, scale model of Berlin in the shape of an elongated rectangle on a black background in an exhibition hall; in the background, visually impaired visitors are feeling the contours of a building.

On the final day of the mobility program, the participants also visited a school for the blind in Berlin, where they were able to observe a second-grade class in action. Of the five students in the class, only one is a native German speaker, which clearly illustrates the challenges faced by the teachers. According to the colleagues’ report, teaching visually impaired and multiply disabled children who are just beginning to learn German is a particularly complex task. At the same time, the teaching methods and pedagogical concepts observed resonated in many ways with professional practices used in Hungary.

iskolai faliújság színes irka-firka rajzokkal, nagybetűs nyomtatással színes alapon a hét napjainak rövidítése, nyomtatott és tárgy-alapú órarend, tapintható színes sündisznó dekoráció

A school bulletin board featuring colorful doodles, the abbreviations for the days of the week in capital letters on a colorful background, a printed subject-based schedule, and a tactile, colorful hedgehog decoration.