Solers (United States)

The overwhelming growth and popularity of mobile devices and games have motivated initiatives to explore mobile and augmented reality to bring the physical and virtual together. While several domains have been the recipient of such focus, particular importance has been placed on the cultural heritage (CH) field, with examples demonstrating the promise of location-based games (LBGs) at enhancing the CH experience aimed at promoting awareness. Games like Pokémon GO have exacerbated the appeal of LBGs, showing that they can be as popular as blockbuster video games. However, as much potential as LBGs have in raising CH awareness, they can be challenging to build because, unlike their commercial counterparts, their primary aim is learning, emphasizing the cultural significance of the real-world location rather than augmented assets. With limited research that explicitly identifies elements in creating these games in CH contexts, this work aimed to identify design practices and considerations in the design of LBGs. This work is intended for educators, researchers, instructional designers, game developers, and those in the CH field interested in exploring creative ways to embody a deeper understanding of and appreciation for CH.

Preschool offers numerous opportunities for teaching cognitive, social, emotional, and language skills. This is particularly important for children with developmental delay (DD), who often struggle with cognitive, physical, communication, social/emotional, and adaptive development. Prompting using verbal, gestural, and physical guidance has been widely used to teach new behaviors or skills. Given the importance of early childhood education, this systematic review examined the effect of prompting in the acquisition of new skills for preschoolers with DD. Fourteen studies using single-subject research design across nine journals served as the basis of this review. Participants' demographics, experimental design, target skills, types of prompting, independent and dependent variables, degree to which the prompting was effective, pairing, and number of prompts used in an intervention were extracted from each study and analyzed. The findings revealed the importance of prompting, and its various forms, for children with DD to support their strengths and enhance targeted skills as needed.

Enthusiasm about the educational benefits offered by the World Wide Web has been tempered in recent years by apprehension regarding the prospects of mitigating associated online threats. Numerous safety measures exist, from legislation to technical controls. Though no doubt helpful, they are not substitutes for education and training. The current study (N = 1,092) aimed at identifying technologies young people have access to, the degree to which they engage in risky online behavior, and their literacy of cyber security practices. Recommendations for tailoring and refining awareness-raising training and interventions are also presented. Overall, findings are discouraging, with participants showing poor judgment with regard to safeguarding their wellbeing in the contexts of preventing malware, handling passwords, dealing with data encryption and storage, and surfing the Internet. The study is predicated on the premise that effective awareness-raising education can be implemented through a better understanding of today's youth and their online practices.

This study investigated certain social aspects of young massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) players’ lives in the context of pathological gameplay while distinguishing addiction from high engagement. Online gameplay frequency and demographic information were also examined. Of the 1,332 sampled, those classified as addicted self-reported the largest percentage of (a) playing online games, (b) scheduling their lives around their gameplay, (c) playing games instead of spending time with family and friends, (d) getting into verbal and physical altercations, and (e) playing to interact with friends and strangers. Statistical analysis, however, revealed no significant differences between the groups, perhaps supporting the idea that players progress through a phase of high engagement before reaching the stage of addiction and that those highly engaged might already show traits or behaviors very similar to, if not the same as, those addicted with regard to certain aspects of their social lives.

Storytelling is an intricate part of the human psyche and hence, human history. From childhood, stories play an important role in human development, in that, for instance, humans automatically construct a storyline so that they can associate information. There is research to suggest that storytelling in video games can be beneficial because it can be used to help players identify with characters and their goals, creating a greater sense of immersion, positive feelings, and more physiological arousal. Furthermore, when the content is specific and targeted, these games are well suited for promoting acquisition, maintenance, and generalization of skills and knowledge. Findings such as these hold immense promise in the context of improving social skills for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Thus, the use of computers and video games, combined with more traditional storytelling, may serve as hopeful tools for motivating and engaging students as well as promoting learning. This chapter expounds upon this line of reasoning and explores the use of interactive storytelling games as an effective intervention in social skills development for children with ASD.

This chapter provides a broad overview of federal civil rights laws that ensure equal opportunity and fair treatment to people with disabilities. These laws and regulations bring with them a wide range of rights and services, some of which translate to entitlements in the form of assistive technology services and devices. It is therefore important that those with disabilities, their family members, and individuals who support people with disabilities become familiar with these various laws and regulations. In addition to discussing technology and disability laws, regulations, and rights, Website URLs of the respective governing office, agency, or outside organization have been included, allowing this chapter to serve not only as a primer but also as a reference as well.

Providing assistive technologies to cognitively impaired students, in the form of computer-based simulations, may improve the transfer of learning at a greater rate than other training media. The underlying premise for using computer-based simulations is that the cognitively impaired student is no longer the passive learner normally found in traditional classrooms. Instead, the cognitively impaired student becomes an active participant with the simulation and learning. In addition, this type of assistive technology provides the student with an opportunity for repeated exposure and practice at a speed in which the student feels comfortable. This chapter discusses the benefits of using computer-based simulations, defines the theoretical foundations that support the transfer of learning, and presents the processes that facilitate individual acquisition and refinement of knowledge and skills. It concludes with a review of the cognitive elements in the creation of mental models and schema.