A tool for person-technology matching in the area of mobile Apps for ASD

Background The number and variety of technological solutions for people with ASD is so big that it is very difficult for families and professionals working with students with disabilities to find appropriate solutions. For a... [ view full abstract ]

Background

The number and variety of technological solutions for people with ASD is so big that it is very difficult for families and professionals working with students with disabilities to find appropriate solutions. For a given individual it is not easy to assess what type of device is better; what device-protection systems should be considered; what type of software apps should be acquired (for communication,
education, etc.); and what any training needs for parents and teachers are.

Rationale

Eleven organisations across Europe are developing tools and protocols for identifying the most appropriate support that is available for children with autism and/or learning disabilities. Preliminary work was undertaken at national level in one European country before widening the work at EU level, thus considering cross-cultural differences and improving results with multilingual availability.


Main points

As the fruit of this European collaboration we expect to reach the following results:
• Assessment App (available in July 2016)
• Online Training Facility
• Research Study about the effectiveness of the Assessment App
The Assessment App, aimed at those who wish to find the best supports for their children with ASD when using tablets, smartphones and smartwatches, will be shown during the conference, with authors running a demonstration.
Conclusions
A high impact is expected on students with autism and their teachers, who will have technology-based assessment and training tools to identify technologies that will strongly impact on their learning and communication.
This submission could form part of a discussion panel on ASD and technology.

The authors have no conflict of interest to disclose. [ view full abstract ]

The authors have no conflict of interest to disclose.