Mobile Technologies for Children by Allison Druin / Women in HCI Lecture Series
I always liked the work of Allison Druin, from the Human Computer Interaction Lab at the University of Maryland very much. She introduced the idea of kids being design partners in software development (kids as designers) and published on robots for kids and Emotional Robots to tell Stories together with James Hendler (2000). Her most recent book on “Mobile Technology for Children” was published in 2009 (Morgan Kaufmann). However, here is a link to a talk she gave at Iowa State University on October 9 2009 on “Mobile Technologies for the World’s Children”. Please find below the audio file of the lecture disseminated by Gerry McKiernan. The video of her talk given in the framework of the “Women in HCI Lecture Series” can be accessed at Vimeo
“Colleagues/
The Audio Is Now Available For This Most Informative Presentation I Had The Opportunity To Attend.
/Gerry
Women in HCI Lecture / Allison Druin / University of Maryland / October 9, 2009 / Noon / Howe Hall / Alliant Energy-Lee Liu Auditorium / Iowa State University
Abstract > For many children (ages 2-12) in the United States, mobile technologies are now an integral part of their everyday living and play experiences. They commonly use mobile phones, netbooks, pen-based
computing, GPSs, computer-enhanced toys and much more.
But this is not the case for all children. There are still young people who live in places where mobile technologies are just becoming affordable. Others live in areas where there is no cell phone service at
all. And still other children live in places where basic living necessities outweigh the need for electronic technologies. There are extreme differences in children’s opportunities and challenges for
learning with new technologies. Therefore, in my talk I will discuss how to approach designing for these diverse children. This talk is not about how to make mobile technologies. It is about how to make BETTER mobile technologies for the world’s children.
I will demonstrate some of our newest work at the Human-Computer Interaction Lab in mobile collaboration and intergenerational mobile storytelling. I will also suggest how these new mobile technologies call
for new approaches to design.
Speaker > Allison Druin is the Director of the Human-Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL) and an Associate Professor in the University of Maryland’s College of Information Studies and Institute for Advanced
Computer Studies. Her work includes: developing digital libraries for children; designing technologies for families; and creating collaborative storytelling technologies for the classroom.
Druin’s most active research is the International Children’s Digital Library (ICDL) [http://mobile-libraries.blogspot.com/2009/08/international-childrens-digital-library.html ] now the largest digital library in the world for children which she and colleagues expanded to a non-profit foundation.
She is the author or editor of four books, and her most recent book was published Spring 2009: Mobile Technology for Children (Morgan Kaufmann, 2009). [http://mobile-libraries.blogspot.com/2009/07/mobile-technology-for-children.html ] She received her Ph.D. in 1997 from the University of New Mexico, her M.S. in 1987 from the MIT Media Lab, and a B.F.A. in 1985 from Rhode Island School of Design.
Sponsored By > Women in Human Computer Interaction Series, Women in STEM
Speaker Series, and Committee on Lectures (funded by GSB).
Link To Audio Available At
[ http://tinyurl.com/ykcvmbn ]”
via Gerry McKiernan/Aha
photo via theHCIL Web site
