Abstract:

Within the framework of the Erasmus+ project "Reconnecting Education with Homeless People", experts in homelessness and innovative learning methodologies from Europe have developed an innovative learning methodology that effectively promotes the inclusion of homeless people through adult education as a prelude to educational, social, personal, and work inclusion.

These are homeless people between 18 and 30 years old without access to stable, safe, and adequate housing, as a result of breakdowns in family, social, and economic ties. This group does not only encompass people in street situation (those who sleep on the street and face cold, hunger, and constant danger to their own lives, which means that their life expectancy is 30 years lower than the average, according to the National Comprehensive Strategy for the Homeless 2015-2020), but also to those who stay overnight in night shelters, temporary accommodations, or who depend on the hospitality of family and friends, just one step away from sleeping on the street.

This methodological strategy combines working methods and dynamics in both the field of social and educational action, transforming the traditional social actions of street teams (guidance, attention to basic needs, mediation) into adapted non-formal training spaces, that serve as a bridge towards more stable formal education processes that lead to the educational and labor insertion of homeless users.

To this end, it establishes progressive itineraries in three work phases, specifically adapted to different levels of training and social situation of exclusion of the participating homeless people.

This paper presents the results obtained after the implementation of the methodology over a period of 5 months with 75 young people experiencing homelessness in Alcázar de San Juan (Spain) and Mytilene (Greece).

Acknowledgement:
This work has been developed within the framework of the Erasmus+ project "Reconnecting education with homeless people: walking towards inclusion through adult education adapted to the reality of homelessness" co-funded by the EU in 2024.

Keywords:

Education, homeless, reconnecting, methodology, strategy.