Situated Scaffolding for Sustainable Participatory Design

An extensive literature on participatory design with older adults has, thus far, little to say about the support older adults need when involved in online activities. Our research suggests that to empower older adults in participatory design, scaffolding work has to be done. Scaffolding interactions - creating temporary instructional support to help the learning of participants - is a common approach in participatory design. Yet, when applied in online participatory design with older adults, the traditional understanding of the concept does not match the way older adults' learn. Hence, we argue for a new understanding of this term, which we call situated scaffolding. We illustrate our argument with a case where older adults collaborate online as part of a participatory design project. We unpack the different dimensions of situated scaffolding and discuss how this novel understanding can be used to further inform sustainable participatory design for and with older adults.

Developing Instructional Support for MEDSReM-2 Through Human Factors Design Principles

Appropriate instruction is critical for ensuring the MEDSReM-2 system (i.e., smartphone app, blood pressure monitor, online portal) will be easily and effectively used and will, therefore, be more likely to be adopted. We will present our iterative processes for developing instructional support for MEDSReM 2 using human factors design principles (e.g., task analyses, comparative analyses, expert evaluation of mock-ups with screen flows). The instructional supports include user manuals, videos, as well as instructions within the MEDSReM 2 app. We will also highlight design principles used to empower the user and the benefits of using an interdisciplinary approach (i.e., gerontology, cognitive psychology, educational psychology, design, community health) to develop instructional support for older adult users.

ENHANCE: The Center for Enhancing Neurocognitive Health, Abilities, Networks, & Community Engagement

Approximately 9 % of those aged 65 and over have a cognitive impairment due to a variety of causes including Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), Parkinson’s disease, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and stroke. Few technology solutions have been directed towards supporting older adults with cognitive impairments and the literature regarding the efficacy of these solutions is sparse. In this symposium, we describe our new Center called ENHANCE (Enhancing Neurocognitive Health, Abilities, Networks, and Community Engagement), which is focused on developing technology support for aging adults with a cognitive impairment due to MCI, TBI, and Stroke. Sara Czaja will provide an overview of the conceptual framework, goals, and structure of ENHANCE, and describe the STRUMM project, that focuses on the design and evaluation of an innovative intelligent adaptive software package aimed at providing cognitive and social support to aging adults with cognitive impairments. Wendy Rogers will discuss the ENACT project, a longitudinal needs assessment focusing on understanding the needs, challenges, and support preferences of our target population and informal caregivers. Neil Charness will describe the AUGMENT development project, which is concerned with developing an instructional support tool for mobility activities, such as wayfinding, locating, and using transportation services. Finally, Walter Boot will discuss the DREAM development project, which is focused on developing a technology-based cognitive aid to support prospective memory activities. Michelle Bourgeois will serve as the discussant for the symposium and highlight the unique opportunities and challenges associated with ENHANCE.

Collaborating with Specialized Instructional Support Personnel

This chapter explores collaboration with specialized instructional support personnel (SISP). It provides an overview of SISP members, including school psychologists, school resource officers, school counselors, and school nurses, and explores how school social workers can effectively work with other SISP. It demonstrates the vital importance of establishing trusting and productive working relationships with SISP in order to meet the diverse needs of students and cultivate a positive school environment. Components of interdisciplinary collaboration include trust, flexibility, interdependence, problem solving, and proactive planning. Such interdisciplinary collaboration benefits schools as well as enhancing partnerships with parents and the community. A case study highlights the importance of school social worker partnership and collaboration with SISP teams.

Self-assessment of football referees on their educational influence on children aged 9–12 during a sports competition

Proper use of the educational potential of sports depends on the entities organizing children’s sports competitions (coaches, parents, referees). Particularly important is their awareness of the purposefulness and legitimacy of actions taken. Numerous studies have been devoted to the role of the coach and parents in providing children and young people with positive sporting experiences. In contrast, the referee has often been overlooked. The behavior of the referees during the match is also important for young players. Assuming that referee-player interactions have a major contribution to educational influence, the purpose of this study was to explore the opinions of soccer referees refereeing matches of children aged 9 to 12 years about their interactions with players in terms of emotional support, game organization, and instructional support. It was also decided to verify whether referees’ self-assessment of their educational function is influenced by experience. The research was conducted among 116 referees licensed by Mazovian Football Association who referee matches of children aged 9–12 years (Orliki and Młodziki categories) in the Masovian Voivodeship in Poland. To assess the referee-players educational interaction, a questionnaire survey was developed. These interactions are present in three domains: emotional support, game organization and instructional support. The results showed significant differences between referees’ self-assessments in the three domains. Referees rated their educational interactions with players higher in the domain of emotional support than the instructional support. Moreover, the results indicated that there was no differences in the referees’ self-assessment between the groups distinguished by more experienced in the domains of emotional support and game organization, while less experienced referees rated the quality of their educational interactions in the instructional support domain higher than those more experienced. The main conclusion of the research is the postulate to introduce pedagogical and psychological issues into the referee training.

Creating a prototype for a seawater farm through an American-Tunisian virtual exchange

This paper will discuss a Virtual Exchange (VE) between the University of Michigan (USA) and the High Institute of Technological Studies of Béja (Tunisia) that took place between October and December 2019. Students from Tunisia and USA were enrolled in two entrepreneurship courses in their respective universities and joined together to work in groups on an innovative project on ‘creating a prototype for a seawater farm in the region of Khniss’ to be presented at the end of the semester. As this project was student-centered, the main focus was to show its impact on the students through their testimonials on what challenges they encountered and what benefits they gained from this experience at an academic and personal level. These testimonials showed that despite differences in intercultural communication competencies between American and Tunisian students and the use of English as a lingua franca, students gained valuable skills in team communication, collaboration, and coordination in a large team spread over two continents. Students taught each other and learned from each other while working toward solving a social and environmental problem the world is struggling with. Another light was shed on the impact of this VE on the instructors, the pedagogy adopted to conduct the project, as well as the contribution of the instructional support staff. Moving from a directive to a student-driven approach was rewarding for the Tunisian instructor who learned how to push students out of their comfort zone, dive into uncertain areas, and ask questions rather than accepting the norms. On his part the American instructor learned that it is possible to create meaningful, unconventional student-led projects across languages, cultures, and geography as long as the teams (students and faculty) are excited and committed to the project. He also learned that students get inspired to be brave, thoughtful, and resourceful when they can witness what effective professional collaboration by faculty looks like.