213,271 research outputs found
Time orientation technologies in special education
A device to train children in time orientation has been designed, developed and evaluated. It is framed within a long-term cooperation action between university and special education school. It uses a specific cognitive accessible time display: Time left in the day is represented by a row of luminous elements initially on. Time passing is represented by turning off sequentially and gradually each luminous element every 15 min. Agenda is displayed relating time to tasks with standard pictograms for further accessibility. Notifications of tasks-to-come both for management support and anticipation to changes uses visual and auditory information. Agenda can be described in an Alternative and Augmentative Communication pictogram language already used by children, supporting individual and class activities on agenda. Validation has been performed with 16 children in 12 classrooms of four special education schools. Methodology for evaluation compares both prior and posterior assessments which are based in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) from the World Health Organization (WHO), together with observation registers. Results show consistent improvement in performances related with time orientation
REHABILITEES WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTSâ CANE SKILLS AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON INDEPENDENT TRAVEL IN NAIROBI CITY COUNTY, KENYA
The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of rehabilitees with visual impairment cane skills on their independent travel. The study was based on Banduraâs social cognitive learning theory. The researcher used a case study research design. The study was carried out at Kenya Institute for the Blind located in Nairobi County, Kenya. The target population was two orientation and mobility trainers and fifty rehabilitees with visual impairment who lost sight between the years 2011 and 2016 and who underwent rehabilitation at KIB. A purposive sampling technique was used to select KIB for the study. Snowball sampling technique was used to locate thirty-seven rehabilitees with visual impairment. Data was collected using questionnaires. The pilot study was conducted at Machakos Technical Institute for the Blind because of its similar characteristics in the admission of rehabilitees with visual impairment. The researcher ensured the content validity of the research instruments through discussion with supervisors and lecturers in the Department of early childhood and Special Needs Education. Quantitative data was gathered using questionnaires and processed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) program. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and presented using tables. The findings revealed that mobility canes were the main device used at Kenya Institute for the Blind for orientation and mobility. Worldwide, canes were the most used device for orientation and mobility for individuals with visual impairment. In KIB, the device was limited in supply and not readily available. Cane skills were the most popular orientation and mobility techniques among rehabilitees in KIB. The study concluded that rehabilitees were not adequately trained since a substantial period of time has elapsed yet they have not indicated favourable independent travel to their places of work. Orientation and mobility training at KIB led to the acquisition of necessary skills relevant to independent travel of individuals with visual impairment. The study recommended that there is a need for Kenya Government to facilitate the production of cheap locally made long canes suitable for our Kenyan roads. Article visualizations
Using Wii technology to explore real spaces via virtual environments for people who are blind
Purpose - Virtual environments (VEs) that represent real spaces (RSs) give people who are blind the opportunity to build a cognitive map in advance that they will be able to use when arriving at the RS. Design - In this research study Nintendo Wii based technology was used for exploring VEs via the Wiici application. The Wiimote allows the user to interact with VEs by simulating walking and scanning the space. Finding - By getting haptic and auditory feedback the user learned to explore new spaces. We examined the participants' abilities to explore new simple and complex places, construct a cognitive map, and perform orientation tasks in the RS. Originality â To our knowledge, this finding presents the first virtual environment for people who are blind that allow the participants to scan the environment and by this to construct map model spatial representations
Evaluating the development of wearable devices, personal data assistants and the use of other mobile devices in further and higher education institutions
This report presents technical evaluation and case studies of the use of wearable and mobile computing mobile devices in further and higher education. The first section provides technical evaluation of the current state of the art in wearable and mobile technologies and reviews several innovative wearable products that have been developed in recent years. The second section examines three scenarios for further and higher education where wearable and mobile devices are currently being used. The three scenarios include: (i) the delivery of lectures over mobile devices, (ii) the augmentation of the physical campus with a virtual and mobile component, and (iii) the use of PDAs and mobile devices in field studies. The first scenario explores the use of web lectures including an evaluation of IBM's Web Lecture Services and 3Com's learning assistant. The second scenario explores models for a campus without walls evaluating the Handsprings to Learning projects at East Carolina University and ActiveCampus at the University of California San Diego . The third scenario explores the use of wearable and mobile devices for field trips examining San Francisco Exploratorium's tool for capturing museum visits and the Cybertracker field computer. The third section of the report explores the uses and purposes for wearable and mobile devices in tertiary education, identifying key trends and issues to be considered when piloting the use of these devices in educational contexts
Recommended from our members
Virtual reality and its role in removing the barriers that turn cognitive impairments into intellectual disability
Early expectations of the contribution that virtual reality (VR) could make to education far exceeded actual applications. This was largely due to the initial immaturity of the technology and a lack of evidence base on which to base design and utilisation. While the early developments in computer based learning largely concentrated on mainstream education, leaving those with special needs behind, the potential of VR as an educational tool was exploited for those with intellectual disabilities right from the start. This paper describes the empirical evidence that has contributed to the development of educational virtual reality for those with intellectual disabilities: studies on transfer of learning from the virtual to the real world; how teachers might support those using VR; the design of virtual environments and what input/control devices best facilitate use of desktop VR. Future developments and ethical issues are also considered
Proto-type installation of a double-station system for the optical-video-detection and orbital characterisation of a meteor/fireball in South Korea
We give a detailed description of the installation and operation of a
double-station meteor detection system which formed part of a research &
education project between Korea Astronomy Space Science Institute and Daejeon
Science Highschool. A total of six light-sensitive CCD cameras were installed
with three cameras at SOAO and three cameras at BOAO observatory. A
double-station observation of a meteor event enables the determination of the
three-dimensional orbit in space. This project was initiated in response to the
Jinju fireball event in March 2014. The cameras were installed in
October/November 2014. The two stations are identical in hardware as well as
software. Each station employes sensitive Watec-902H2 cameras in combination
with relatively fast f/1.2 lenses. Various fields of views were used for
measuring differences in detection rates of meteor events. We employed the
SonotaCo UFO software suite for meteor detection and their subsequent analysis.
The system setup as well as installation/operation experience is described and
first results are presented. We also give a brief overview of historic as well
as recent meteor (fall) detections in South Korea. For more information please
consult http://meteor.kasi.re.kr .Comment: Technical/instrumentation description of a professional meteor
detection system, 23 pages, 20 figures (color/monochrome), 5 tables,
submitted to the Journal of Korean Astronomical Society (JKAS,
http://jkas.kas.org/, http://jkas.kas.org/history.html
- âŠ