CO-CREATION REPORTChildren with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Claudia Adiwijaya & Joey Cheung

DESIGN CONTEXT

For this third project, we have chosen to improve on a previous co-creation toolkit that was used in a design core class. The project was developed under the title “The Kinetic Classroom” and involved working with a team of children in grade 6-7 with learning differences from Kenneth Gordon Maplewood School in North Vancouver.

The project goal was to create an interactive textile based system that would enable and empower children with learning differences while at school. Individuals with learning differences make use of a variety of auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic cues to aid them in processing information. The co-creator toolkit used included a variety of tools that gathered qualitative information was gathered that guided the direction of the project.

We also aware of the lacking ability from this children with their communication skill. We want to focus with their verbal skill to express them self to their class mate.

QUESTION: How can the co-creative toolkit facilitate better verbal communication skills for children with learning differences (ADHD) to help them improve relationships with classmates?

background info

For this project, we want to know more about children with learning differences and facilitate them to develop better verbal communication skills that can improve their relationships with their classmates. Children with ADHD often have trouble expressing themselves and make use of medication to help with their condition. But medication has many side effects, and affect every child differently. Other options which have been helpful for children with ADHD are psychotherapy, and proper education and training. Intervention strategies were proven to be helpful in encouraging children with ADHD. They responded well to immediate feedback and rewards. Exercise and sleep has also been proven to help regulate energy levels of children with ADHD.

“The focus of this project is to move towards empowering children by giving them the opportunity to be involved in the development of solutions for their conditions and let them know that they are more than their conditions.”

Cognitive rehabilitation exercises have also been proven to help improve working memory of children with ADHD. Exercises come in the form of games and with practice can strengthen neural connections in the brain.

Though support from parents and teachers are vital in supporting children with ADHD, the focus of this project is to move towards empowering children by giving them the opportunity to be involved in the development of solutions for their conditions and let them know that they are capable of helping themselves. While there will be adults assisting and guiding them through the process, we would like the children to take a more active role in building the foundation for their future independence through awareness and action.

1. Generative Toolkits and Occupational Therapy

analysis of precedent toolkits

2. Generative Design Research with Children in Cambodia

- How do children want a play space for the therapy department at Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children to look like? *Phase 1 (Exploration Phase)

- Cognitive + emotional toolkit: (collage) photos, words, symbolic shapes, cartoon like expressions, systematic sets, raw collections of scrap material

- The toolkit responds by giving the children a range of visual materials to choose from. The foam blocks and scrap materials have different aspects that represent textures, colors, patterns, and shapes that would determine the criteria for the final design.

- How do prosthetic legs affect the children who use them? *Phase 1 (Exploration Phase)

- Cognitive + emotional toolkit: (diary study, timeline, paper dolls) photos, symbolic shapes, cartoon like expressions and systematic sets

- The toolkit responds by giving the children a chance to talk about their experiences without distressing them. The activities are meant to be fun while still collecting valuable data about their attitudes and behaviors.

co-creation toolkit

The co-creation toolkit is designed to gather qualitative information from participants with the use of cultural probes. Each cultural probe was chosen with a specific purpose in mind. The participants in this case were two boys who had difficulty focusing and communicating, so the toolkit was created to gather information on how their learning difference might affect them and to know more about their behaviours and attitudes.

In order to gain a level of empathic understanding for the project, the co-creation tool kits are needed at the early stage of research and thev design process. The toolkit used for this project includes:

1. Object guessing game2. Interview Q&A cards (with voice/video recording component)3. Instant film camera4. Activity journal

The outcome of the toolkits will produce direct qualitative data based on the most responsive object that the participants engage with. Previous participants had issues with both written and verbal communication because they both had their own way of dealing with their conditions. One boy was more comfortable writing and drawing, while the other boy was more comfortable talking. For our improved toolkit, we hope to be able to gather more precise information on the problem areas in communication by having the participants commu-nicate to us their problems (either through written or verbal means) so that we can get to know their level of comfort and which problem areas to target. The toolkit is meant to get to know the participants better in a more emphatic and personal way.

This project initially sampled students in grade 6-7 at Kenneth Gordon Maplewood School in North Vancouver. Each team who worked on this project were assigned two children with a specific learning difference. The two children who took part in this project had difficulties with focus. The revised project however will focus on children with ADHD in the same age range.

Sampling Participants

Session Activity

Researchers and teachers will first introduce the project to the children at their school. The children will then be given their toolkits and will have one hour to complete them.

Teachers will be present to assist them with any questions but will minimize interaction with the children while they are completing the toolkits. Researchers are on site but will not be accessible to the children. This is done in order to minimize bias and influence on the responses from the children.

Researchers will make use of ethnographic field research techniques to document behaviors of children without their knowledge.

Consent will be taken from parents prior to the session. After the time is over, teachers and researchers collect the toolkits and thank the children for their participation and end with more incentives.

session script

5 min

5 min

15 min

5 min

15 min

15 min

10 min

5 min

DURATION ACTIVITY

Introduction

Questionnaire

Object Guessing Game

ACTIVITY JOURNALDraw Yourself

EXERCISE BREAK

Q&A Cards and Camera

Smartphone Voice Recorder

5 min

Feedback Page

Collection and Closing Statement

QUESTIONNAIRE

1. How comfortable are you with talking to your classmates?

2. How many times do you talk to your classmates on a typical day? 3. How confident are you in expressing thoughts or feelings to your classmates? 4. Do you have difficulty expressing your thoughts or feelings to your classmates?

5. If you have difficulty expressing yourself, how many times out of 10 does it happen out of all the conversations you have in a day?

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6. How do you feel about having group activities during the class?

7. How do you feel about talking to other children without learning differences? 8. What are some of the challenges you have when talking to other children without learning differences? 9. What would help you express yourself to other children without learning differences?

toolkit instruction

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Path of ExpressionParticipants will be given their toolkits to interact with in their classrooms. There will be teachers and researchers present for assistance and guidance if needed and provide immediate feedback.

Sensitizing Materials Sensitizing materials include a questionnaire that includes questions where participants will be asked to talk about themselves and their current condition (experiences, feelings and challenges). The draw yourself activity in the activity journal is more visual and engaging in order to help ease participants into showing their level of self-confidence through drawing. The object guessing game sensitizes participants and makes them more aware of their verbal communication skills.

Activate Participants MemoryThe instant film camera adds a more visual element by allow the participants to capture photos of those they interview so that they can refer back to it when going over what each person has said. The response recording session allows participants to go over notes they have written in the previous activity and summarize them in their own words verbally. The object guessing game also activates the participant’s memory by getting them to think about words they’ve learned in the past.

Facilitate the Co-Creation of a Better Future Experience

The feedback page helps facilitate a better future experience because the participants are able to talk about their thoughts on the activities and allow them to redesign the activities according to their current communication skill level. The information gathered from this will initially allow designers to understand what the needs of the participants are better with their involvement.

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PROCESS pictures

- Really pretty, fun colourful and personalized- Camera is cool - Ask more specific questions in the questionnaire (close-ended may be easier for kids to answer)- Change order of emoji scale on questionnaire to match Likert scale- Only have one set of cards- Distinguish activities done by participants from activities done by others- Prefered classic notebook style over notebook with flap

FEEDBACK

Activity journal- Handstitched journal - Made with scrap materials- Includes pages for: name, draw yourself, interview response, describe me in a few words

Markers- Colorful permanent markers - Taken from previous kit

Object guessing game cards- Hand-drawn watercolor images- Hand-written with simple icons

Other- Small box- Purchased from Urban Source

Initial prototype:

Activity journal-Better quality paper (pages, Q&A cards + envelope)-Designated photo and response pages-Rounded corners

Markers- Addition of water based markers

Object guessing game cards-Better illustrations and cleaner format

Instruction booklet-from sentences to point form-clearer and more concise wording

Other-bigger box-more present-like look-incentives (candy)

Changes in prototype: