Abstract:

In order to apply virtual immersive technologies and augmented reality to students with special educational needs, this study proposes the creation of immersive virtual environments. These technologies permit to model real environments enabling real individual attention to students with special educational needs. To perform the immersive 3D solution an integrated system composed of software, computers, displays, projectors and glasses is applied. Furthermore, a new technique based on visual servoing for augmented reality is developed.
From this perspective, virtual technologies are inclusive educational support, since they allow the students with special educational needs perform structured tasks adjusted to the possibilities of each one. The works of Brown (1999) indicate some of the features that should have virtual environments, among which are: autonomous learning, possibility to repetitively perform certain real life skills, learning from mistakes and, finally, learning from the experience in certain contexts. Also, the work of Parsons et al (2000), completing the above issues, relates that, in these environments, the levels of input stimuli controlled by the user are similar to the real world. However, in some cases, there may be problems of generalization of the learned tasks. In the same way, Strickland (1998) suggests that virtual reality is a resource that adapts the learning characteristics of these students. Using virtual reality, the students obtain the information visually, facilitating, thus, a continuous adjustment of the system features according to the different needs. Through the virtual environments developed, the adaptation to cognitive styles and educational needs of these students are achieved. As the paper describes, using virtual reality and augmented reality, the autonomous learning of these students are improved.

Keywords:

Immersive learning, special needs education, virtual reality, augmented reality.