Digital Strategies for Supporting Strengths- and Interests-based Learning with Children with Autism
Cara Wilson, Margot Brereton, Bernd Ploderer, Laurianne Sitbon, Beth Saggers · 2017 · Proceedings of the 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS) · doi:10.1145/3132525.3132553
Summary
This paper investigates how an open-ended audio-visual calendaring app called MeCalendar was appropriated by children with autism and their teachers in classroom settings, shifting the focus from deficit-remediation to strengths- and interests-based learning. Most technologies designed for children with autism use predefined content to enhance specific skills like verbal communication or emotion recognition. Few leverage the child's own — often very specific — interests, strengths, and capabilities. The researchers at Queensland University of Technology proposed that digital technologies offer opportunities for children to personalise learning with their own content, following their own interests and enabling self-expression. MeCalendar is an iPad app that lets children document daily activities through photos and videos in a calendar format, with annotation through text, audio, or written notes. The study partnered with an autism-specific primary school in Brisbane, Australia, working with two classes of six children each (aged 6-7) and two teachers over 10 weeks. Implementation was deliberately kept open-ended — teachers had complete freedom over how to use the app. Data collection included teacher diary entries, 20+ hours of classroom video observation, field notes, and teacher interviews before, during, and after the school term. The theoretical framing draws on Self-Determination Theory (competence, autonomy, relatedness) and Speech and Language therapy approaches like Floor-Time and the Hanen Centre's More Than Words program, which emphasize following the child's lead and building on their interests.
Key findings
The study identified two distinct forms of appropriation. Teacher-led appropriation saw teachers integrating MeCalendar into existing practices: one teacher used it in structured language and handwriting sessions, the other as a free-use motivational and behaviour modelling tool. Both independently adopted a weekly "Show and Share" format where children presented their calendar entries to the class. Child-led appropriation produced unexpected and powerful outcomes. Non-verbal or minimally-verbal children began using spontaneous language to describe their photos and videos. One child who "has no spontaneous, or had no spontaneous, language" began willingly standing and speaking before the class. Children who typically resisted handwriting tasks willingly wrote about their own photos. A child known for extreme routine rigidity insisted on presenting at Show and Share on the wrong day, breaking his own routine. The researchers identify "self-scaffolding" as a key phenomenon: children used their own content (photos, videos of interests like pets, fire engines, martial arts) as prompts to scaffold their own learning, rather than relying on pre-defined scaffolds provided by others. The calendar format itself proved valuable, teaching temporal concepts like "before" and "after" to children who struggle with abstract time. Teachers reported the app created "warmth" in the classroom — children got to know each other through shared interests, friendships developed, and the technology fostered child-to-child interaction. Video modelling (teachers recording children exhibiting positive behaviour) provided powerful self-reinforcement when children rewatched the clips.
Relevance
This research challenges the dominant paradigm in autism technology that focuses on remediating deficits through scripted, predefined content. Instead, it demonstrates that open-ended, flexible tools that empower children to document and share their own interests can produce broad developmental gains across verbal communication, social interaction, writing, and confidence — precisely the areas typically targeted by deficit-focused tools, but achieved through a strengths-based route. For accessibility practitioners and educational technology designers, the key implications are: design for appropriation rather than prescription; trust teachers' expert knowledge of individual children to guide implementation; and recognize that a child's special interests are not distractions to be managed but catalysts for learning and social engagement. The study also highlights practical design considerations for this population, including the need for larger touch targets (fine motor challenges), streamlined multi-step processes (children became frustrated with too many taps), and the importance of physical portability between home and school contexts. The limitation of low parental participation despite initial enthusiasm suggests that bridging home-school use requires more deliberate design support.
Tags: autism · educational technology · children · strengths-based approach · self-determination · participatory design · inclusive design · classroom technology · self-expression · neurodiversity