El procedimiento para acceder a la Información Pública.

Evidence suggests that the eighteen participants in the Mada Center case study had a good user experience overall. An analysis of the findings indicates that two-thirds of these participants gave a positive rating to ease of access, registration and login, navigation through the application, ease of use, performance and efficiency of the learning system. The majority of the Mada participants found that the Carer profiling tool accurately assessed caregivers’ prior knowledge of teaching strategies and that STAK offered support commensurate with caregivers’ needs and provided basic guidelines for using each teaching strategy. More than half of these participants strongly agreed that there is no single strategy that will teach a child with autism to be successful socially. Regarding the Child Profile only two-thirds of the participants strongly agreed or agreed that STAK had asked the right questions to correctly assess children’s needs, recommended strategies that were suitable for children with ASDs and matched educational resources with individual profiles to help in the development of their social skills (Figure 7.18). There was some evidence to suggest that participants were confused as to the purpose of the child profiling tool, believing that the researcher was asking parents to build profiles as part of a diagnostic process. Wary of technology some parents failed to understand that the profiling tool was being used to assess children’s difficulties for the sole purpose of selecting the most suitable educational resources to meet their individual needs.

Figure 7.18 Mada Center – STAK Child Profile (Question 4) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

STAK asks the right questions to correctly assess children's needs

STAK recommends strategies that are suitable for children with

ASDs

STAK offers resources that match individual children's profiles

STAK provides resources that help children to

develop social skills

PAR TI CI PANT R ESP O NSE C O U NT

Mada Center - STAK Child Profile

126

Over half of the participants agreed that STAK matched appropriate teaching strategies to children’s learning stages (novice, intermediate, advanced or acquired) and provided sufficient guidance to caregivers as they worked through the personalised training programme with their children. Not surprisingly only half of the participants felt that STAK had provided them with satisfactory information on each teaching strategy, as this material was only available through English and no Arabic translations were included in the current prototype. Nevertheless two-thirds of Mada participants agreed that STAK matched educational resources to suit children’s profiles (learning stages, learning styles, language and comprehension abilities and special interests) and 8 out of 10 participants considered that the structured training approach would be effective in teaching social skills to children with ASDs (Figure 7.19).

Figure 7.19 Mada Center – STAK Structured Approach (Question 7)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

Breaking down information into small chunks

Demonstrating the steps in each skill Asking children to role play using skill

steps

Giving child encouraging feedback Reinforcing skill steps using social

stories

Introducing skills through games Providing practice opportunities

Mada Center - STAK Structured Approach

most effective more effective effective neutral ineffective less effective Least effective

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Table 7.5 presents the statements from all the questionnaires and reflects the number of positive participant responses from the Mada Assistive Technology Center, Qatar.

Table 7.5 Mada Center Qatar – Positive Responses to Feedback Questionnaire

Case Study Mada Center Qatar

Role Key Workers Teachers Parents Sample 3 2 13 Questionnaire Sections User Experience Ease of Access 3/3 2/2 9/13 Registration / Login 3/3 1/2 9/13

Navigation through application 3/3 1/2 6/13

Ease of Use 3/3 1/2 6/13

Performance 3.3 1/2 6/13

Efficiency 3/3 1/2 5/13

Carer Profile

STAK accurately assesses Carers’ prior knowledge of teaching strategies

3/3 2/2 7/13

STAK offers support that adequately reflects Carers’ needs 3/3 2/2 6/13

STAK offers simple instructions for using each teaching strategy

3/3 2/2 5/13

There is no single strategy that will teach a child with autism to be successful socially

3/3 2/2 10/13

Child Profile

STAK asks the right questions to correctly assess children ‘s needs

3/3 2/2 7/13

STAK recommends strategies that are suitable for child/children with ASDs

3/3 2/2 7/13

STAK offers resources that match individual children’s profiles

3/3 1/2 5/13

STAK provides resources that help children to develop social skills

3/3 1/2 7/13

Teaching Strategies

STAK matches appropriate teaching strategies to children’s learning stages (novice, intermediate, advanced or acquired)

3/3 1/2 8/13

STAK recommends a combination of strategies to teach children to be successful socially

3/3 1/2 6/13

STAK provides adequate support to Carers when they use the strategies recommended

3/3 1/2 5/13

Carers requiring Full Support are given access to clear explanations of teaching strategies

3/3 1/2 8/13

STAK provides examples illustrating the use of teaching strategies in different contexts

3/3 1/2 8/13

Carers are guided satisfactorily through a structured programme to teach social skills

2/3 1/2 5/13

128

Case Study Mada Center Qatar

Role Key

Workers

Teachers Parents

Sample 3 2 13

Questionnaire Sections

Support provided to Carers on Teaching Strategies

Information on Didactic Instruction is sufficient 2/3 1/2 9/13

Information on Modelling is sufficient 2/3 1/2 10/13

Information on Role Play is sufficient 2/3 1/2 10/13

Information on Corrective Feedback is sufficient 1/3 1/2 9/13

Information on Positive Reinforcement is sufficient 1/3 1/2 10/13

Information on Motivating Games is sufficient 1/3 1/2 8/13

Information on Practice is sufficient 1/3 1/2 8/13

Educational Resources provided to complement Teaching Strategies

STAK selects educational resources to suit a child’s learning stage

3/3 1/2 8/13

STAK chooses educational resources which correspond to a child’s learning style

2/3 1/2 9/13

STAK picks educational resources which suit a child’s language ability

3/3 1/2 8/13

STAK selects educational resources which suit a child’s comprehension ability

3/3 1/2 7/13

STAK chooses educational resources based on a child’s special interests

3/3 1/2 10/13

STAK provides educational resources which motivate children to learn

3/3 1/2 6/13

STAK offers sufficient educational resources 1/3 1/2 7/13

STAK Structured Approach

Breaking down information into small chunks 2/3 2/2 10/13

Demonstrating the steps in each skill 2/3 2/2 11/13

Asking children to role play using skill steps 2/3 2/2 10/13

Giving child encouraging feedback 3/3 2/2 13/13

Reinforcing skill steps using social stories 3/3 2/2 11/13

Introducing skills through games 1/3 2/2 9/13

Providing practice opportunities 2/3 2/2 10/13

129