Designing a virtual teacher for non-verbal children with autism: Pedagogical affordances and the influence of teacher voice. Presentation given to the 4th International Wireless Ready SymposiumDigital Asia: Language, Technology & Community 2010

1. Paul Herring, Kieron Sheehy, Roger Jones and Karen Kear 4th International Wireless Ready Symposium Digital Asia: Language, Technology & Community 2010 Designing a virtual teacher for non-verbal children with autism: Pedagogical affordances and the influence of teacher voice.

2. Children with Autism qualitative impairment in social interaction, qualitative impairments in communication delay in, or total lack of, the development of spoken language restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behaviour, interests and activities Eighty per cent will have profound or severe learning difficulties. Within this group, approximately one-third to one-half of these children will lack functional speech (Mirenda 2003)

3. Pedagogies and Approaches Behavioural: Applied Behaviour Analysis, Lovaas, SCAmp Environmental : TEACCH, Daily Life Therapy Social Interaction : Intensive Interaction, Technological : virtual worlds (Bignell, 2008) and socially intelligent agents (Dautenhahn and Werry, 2004).

4. The Picture Exchange Communications System An augmentative & alternative communication (AAC) approach For children with little or no speech to develop language and communication skills. E xchanging pictures and symbols for desired items or outcomes. There is empirical evidence to support the value of this approach (Preston and Carter, 2009).

10. Would you like to continue?

11. Task 3: Verbal Request only

14. Coding using fOCUS III software