ICT for persons with mental challenges

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ICT for persons with mental challenges

• Professor Arun Mehta
• President, Bidirectional Access Promotion Society
  (bapsi.org)

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Why?

• Persons with mental challenges have primarily
  communication disabilities, so communication
  technologies have a role
• Computers can be easier to work with than human
  beings -- they are more consistent and patient,
  while not prone to moods
• If you cannot communicate, teachers cannot teach
  you, doctors have a hard time treating you,
  society ignores you (or worse)
• The problem each mentally challenged person has
  a unique combination of abilities and disabilities

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When?

• With delayed development, you get behavior that
  is not age appropriate, so if we can get the
  child to start communicating via the computer
  when still just a few years old, maybe the child
  has some chance of obtaining an education
• Usually, we assume a person is literate, before
  we teach her computers. A child with mental
  challenges may need to learn how to use a
  computer in order to become literate

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How?

• The software needs to be highly customizable
• We created a platform that makes it very easy to
  add new modules
• Each module does a small, specific task
• First step pick the combination of modules you
  need for a specific task
• Two button operation One button to switch
  between modules
• In each module, the software highlights each
  choice by turn
• With the other button, you can say "yes" to a
  choice, by pressing it when the choice you like
  is highlighted

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Module Example Deleting Text
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Low cost two-button input device

• A thin spring in a fat spring when they touch, a
  signal goes to the computer
• Works for children with very little strength in
  their muscles (e.g. cerebral palsy)
• Simple physical movements work for children with
  autism
• ("Brain Behavior Connections in Autism", Nancy
  Minshew, Diane Williams)

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Free and open source software addressing the
supply side

• Depending on the specific needs of individual
  children, we need to keep adding modules
• At BAPSI, we encourage students seeking practical
  training in "agile" software writing to work with
  us on this
• We put their names at the bottom of the modules
  they helped with, which helps them get jobs
  (software can be used without installing at
  skid.org.in)

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Demonstration of picture browser and recognize
modules