Multisensory Participatory Design for Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Abstract

Participatory design techniques are used to involve children with special educational needs and disabilities in the design of video games and other artefacts, but previous research has not sufficiently addressed several issues. Among these are (1) the need to develop techniques to facilitate the involvement of children with a wider range of disabilities, including children with severe and profound intellectual disabilities (ID); and (2) the need to evaluate the potential benefits of such participation for the participants themselves, and not merely in terms of the benefits to the software or other artefacts produced. We have developed a multisensory design technique: ten children (8 - 17 years; 3 female) with a range of special educational needs (including children with severe ID) participated. Parents and teachers completed a questionnaire and reported that the technique was engaging and enjoyable for children, and that they would support the use of the technique in future.