Date: 30-08-2018

NEWS - University College Dublin joins ISSA’s ranks

School of Computer Science is involved in ADHD research program.

ISSA is pleased to announce that a new member has joined the ranks: the University College of Dublin. The University College Dublin is an established institute in Ireland, a School of Computer Science founded as early as 1970, way back in the early days of the digital revolution.

The department that joins ISSA on its behalf has a number of interesting projects related to curriculum development and emerging technologies for education. They are currently coordinating a project - AHA project (ADHD Augmented) - that has received funding from the European Commission for the pilot Technologies and Tools for Children and Young People with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The University College Dublin chose to join ISSA after the 2016 ISSA conference, where one of their peers - Lizbeth Goodman - delivered a keynote speech and valuable networking expansions were made.

 

Enhanced learning
The pilot project focuses on the implementation and integration of existing technologies (such as mobile apps, online literacy program, and augmented reality development) to enhance learning for children with ADHD, assist their parents and educators during the teaching and assessment process, and investigate whether the combination of such technologies can assist children with ADHD to stay focused, make fewer mistakes, and finish assignments at school as well as homework.

AHA will carry out and evaluate representative pilots with children, with participating (primary) schools in Ireland based on a robust pedagogical approach using existing digital technologies. Although Ireland has been chosen as a test-bed for this pilot project, the results aim to have a real-world impact, at European level, and internationally. It is among the plans to expand the project not just for ADHD diagnosed students but further to every student in primary school.

 

Cross-pollination
This is where the University College Dublin foresees that the ISSA network will show its added value, in sharing and implementing the study outcomes and adapting the material, technology and overall learnings for the benefit of children. The project team emphasizes that it would be great to exchange learnings and further explore AHA pilot project with other ISSA organizations.

ISSA welcomes the University College Dublin with great enthusiasm, as technology is becoming increasingly important in people’s lives and the cross-over between tailored pedagogy and digital learning environments may prove to become highly valuable. More information on the program and the team can be found via https://aha.ucd.ie/

 

On the photo: historical buildings of the University College Dublin (school of art history and cultural policy)