Group Work About Geometrical Concepts Among Blind and Sighted Pupils Using Haptic Interfaces

Abstract

In the study presented in this paper two haptic and visual prototypes for learning about geometrical concepts in group work in primary school have been designed and evaluated. The aim was for the prototypes to support collaborative learning between sighted and visually impaired pupils. The first prototype was a 3D environment, that supported learning of spatial geometry. The second prototype was a flattened 3D environment that supported learning to distinguish between angles. The two prototypes were evaluated in four schools with small groups of pupils - two sighted and one visually impaired. The results showed that the support for the visually impaired user was good and that cooperation and learning are satisfactorily supported. However, a number of interesting problems were also discovered that need to be investigated further. A promising result was that the power of the touch-based haptic interface for supporting visually impaired people was made clear