iCAN: A tablet-based pedagogical system for improving communication Skills of children with autism

Submitted by mlb78 on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 17:23
TitleiCAN: A tablet-based pedagogical system for improving communication Skills of children with autism
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsChien, Miao-En, Jheng, Cyun-Meng, Lin, Ni-Miao, Tang, Hsien-Hui, Taele, Paul, Tseng, Wen-Sheng, and Chen, Mike Y.
JournalInternational Journal of Human-Computer Studies
Volume73
Issue2015
Pagination79-90
ISSN Number1071-5819 (Print)
Keywordsassistive technology, Autism, Interface design, software applications
AbstractThe Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) is the conventional pedagogical approach for developing the communication skills of children with autism, and research has supported the approach's great effectiveness in its communicative utilization of picture cards. Unfortunately, the paper-based approach's effectiveness is hampered by the time-consuming and complex preparation process of manually creating and managing these picture cards for use between the children and their caregivers. This paper presents iCAN, a tablet-based system that adopts the successful aspects of the traditional PECS approach while incorporating advantageous features such as support for digital, visualization, and voice capabilities; improved portability due to its smaller form factor on a tablet; and image-capturing capabilities for expanding the flexibility of content creation. We deployed our system onto eleven children participants - whom are diagnosed with moderate to severe autism - and their primary caregivers over a span of four weeks, and our results demonstrated that iCAN reduced content-preparation time by over 70% while also enhancing the willingness of children with autism to learn and interact with others.
NotesThis study improved the traditional pedagogical approach for teaching communication skills to children with autism by incorporiting digital technology. Specifically, the researchers incorporated the traditional PECS approach into a tablet-based system in order to make the approach portable and less time-consuming. Eleven children and their caregivers were invitedd to test the new system during a period of four weeks. Results showed that the system reduced the content-preparation time by 70%. It also improved childrens' willingness to learn and interact with the system.
URLhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S107158191400086X
DOI10.1016/j.ijhcs.2014.06.001