Abstract:

COSPATIAL is a 3-year international project funded by the European Commission exploring the use of innovative technologies for supporting collaborative interaction and development of social competence for children on the autism spectrum as well as their typically developing peers. It is known that technology is particularly attractive to children with autism and its use in education can have positive and beneficial effects. However, many educational ICT programs are unsuitable for children with autism and there are few adequate bespoke solutions on the market. Research is being conducted to address this issue although to date relatively few articles describe suitable guidelines and methodologies for development of technology for children with autism. COSPATIAL is focused on developing two main collaborative technologies for use in the classroom: co-located shared active surfaces (SAS) and collaborative virtual environments (CVEs). This paper will present a rationale for the use of CVEs as a viable, acceptable and uniquely useful medium to support social interaction and communication in children on the autism spectrum. Specific research challenges for the design of such CVEs are identified and the current stage of research design-development will be described.

Keywords:

Autism, social participation, collaborative interaction, collaborative virtual environments, shared active surfaces.