An Exploration of the Effectiveness of the use of Communication
Apps through Mobile Devices on children with Austim Spectrum
Disorders (ASD)
An Exploration of the Effectiveness of the use of Communication
Apps through Mobile Devices on children with Autism Spectrum
Disorders (ASD)Ms. Miriam O Sullivan Institute of Technology
TraleePrincipal Supervisor: Dr. Tom Farrelly (Institute of
Technology Tralee)Co-Supervisor: Mr. Peter Given (Institute of
Technology Tralee)
NANO NAGLE SCHOOL LISTOWEL
Context- Glossary of terms: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD):
Complex neurological disorder (Bluestone, 2005).Effects social,
communication and behaviour skills.Heterogeneous condition.Picture
Exchange Communication System (P.E.C.S.) (Frost and Bondy,
2012).
Mobile devices: Smartphones, Tablets, iPad, iPod, iPhone.
Communication Apps: Seven categoriesExamples include:
Proloquo2go, Grace, LetMeTalk, Voice4u, etc.Whats it Like?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKQdMH7Wiok 3Research
Questions
Theres already an App for that- Reinventing the wheel!
When and How?Current research: Availability (Stokes, 2011; De
Leo et al., 2010; Winograd, 2010). Sources. Design methodology.
Development of Communication Apps that are currently
available:Software developers (McEwen, 2014).Parents of children
with ASD.
Onei was developed by a Social Care Professional in partnership
with a school for children with Special Needs (Nano Nagle School
Listowel) an emphasis on empirical evidence.
Availability: small scale research (6 participants is the
largest study I have found). Sources: America and Australia.Design
Methodology: advertises participatory research; however,
participants are not the instigators of the research and parents
and professionals are used as proxys to represent
participants.6What makes this research interdisciplinary?Different
disciplines hold different preference for methodologies. Cohen
states not method bound- this research is open and considers
methods from different disciplines.7Data collection:Participant
ProfileInterviews Staff (Classroom teachers and Speech and Language
Therapists)ParentsObservations Informal Formal- Autism Treatment
Evaluation Checklist (Autism Research Institute)Focus
GroupQuestionnairesStaff Parents
Focus on observations and focus groups.8
Designing for the user: User-Centered Design
Designing with the user
Ethical Approval: Distribute letters of information and informed
consent through the research site (the school distributes the
letters to potential participants and their parents on behalf of
the researcher in order to comply with ethical guidelines).
User Profiles: to be completed by classroom teachers.
Confidentiality is essential and only the primary researcher has
access to these profiles. These profiles assist the researcher in
observations and in developing user requirements. Data Protection
Act.
Researcher to up skill in order to learn programming languages
to develop the App (HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript). Collaborate with
Programmers (iMAR). Provide parents and staff with a written plan
of implementation. Researcher is on-site for the first week to
demonstrate use and ensure children are being trained correctly on
how to use the App. Researcher visiting each classroom and child to
assist with implementation.
Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC), Observations and
Usability Testing.Initial Findings: Triangulation of theory: from
theory to practiceCurrent use of mobile devices: Availability of
mobile devices in Ireland (Eircom Household Sentiment Survey,
2013). Effects of using Apps and mobile devices on children with
ASD (Quillen, 2011; Bradshaw, 2013; De Leo et al., 2010; McEwen,
2014). Initial findings from field research are encouraging.User
requirements:Sensory processing (Hatch-Rasmussen, 2015; Sensory
Processing Disorder Foundation, 2015).Motor skills (Hayes et al.,
2010). App features.Development of frameworks for building with
children with ASD as opposed to for children with ASD.
Conclusion:
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