As tecnologias de informação e comunicação na educação de crianças com perturbações do espectro do autismo

Abstract

Autism is a severe disorder of the function of the brain, characterized by the absence of social interaction, poor communication, repetitive movements and a very restricted variations of activities and interests. (Papalia, D. E., Olds, S. W., & Feldman, R. D., 2001). This disorder accompanies the autistics throughout their lives and affects all spheres of the same, being one of the most outstanding school. The education that one individual receives along his life marcs him as a person and determines, for shore, the legacy that he will live on the society. A society in a constant change, in which teaching, and the teaching - learning methods have to keep up, namely through the adoption of strategies that include new technologies. This work enhances the advantages that can arise of the partnership between the teaching of children with special education needs (SEN) and the information and communication technologies (ICT), with a special focus on a study of a children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The instruments used had a qualitative nature, namely demi-structured interviews and registration of observation grids. The interviews were conducted to the mother of the child, to the kindergarten teacher and the special education teacher, in order to gather information through several dimensions to achieve a reliable picture of the case in question. Results show that ICT is not truly used as a methodological strategia on the teaching and learning process of children with SEN, because sometimes requires a constant individual supervision that teachers can`t provide due to the reality: the elevated number of students in the classroom. However, the results on this study show that ICT, specifically the Tablet, are encouraging and motivate good performances, getting them involved increasing the time spent on the task, which is good for his autonomy. During this process, we highlight the trust that the mother shows on the evolution of the motor skills of her soon, towards the Tablet, and the positive collaboration between the school and the family that are working together for the well-being and psychosocial development of the child.

Date of Award	24 May 2016
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Filomena Ermida Figueiredo Branco da Ponte (Supervisor)