University of Bath partners with FutureLearn to broaden understanding of how technology can support children with autism
The course on ‘Smart-ASD: Matching autistic people with technology resources’ is open now for enrolment and starts in April to coincide with World Autism Awareness Day
London, UK, 22nd February 2017: FutureLearn, the leading social learning platform, today announces with its partner, the University of Bath, the upcoming launch of their course: Smart-ASD: Matching autistic people with technology resources.
According to the National Autistic Society, autism is much more common than many people think. There are around 700,000 people on the autism spectrum in the UK – more than 1 in 100. The charity suggests without greater public understanding, autistic people and their families are at risk of being isolated in society.
The course, aimed at parents, carers and practitioners, as well as those generally interested in finding out more about how digital technology can best support children with autism, is open for enrolment now and will be starting on 3rd April 2017. The course is free and designed to equip learners with an understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Intellectual Disability (ID) and explore how technology resources can be used to support this group.
The course is coinciding with World Autism Awareness Day on 2nd April 2017 and aims to increase understanding of how children with autism can be best supported. As well as increasing overall awareness, the course further aims to provide detailed knowledge of the subject and provide solutions and advice for those working closely with children with ASD and ID. The course introduces learners to the free SMART-ASD app, helping teachers and parents to assess the needs of autistic children and identify the most suitable technology to assist their individual requirements.
The course will cover the following areas:
● What is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Intellectual (or learning) Disability (ID)?
● How can technology best support children with ASD and ID?
● How to choose the most appropriate technology to support children with ASD and ID.
● SMART-ASD: Matching autistic people with technology – how recommendations can be made, specific to each child.
Professor Mark Brosnan, Director of the Centre for Applied Autism Research, University of Bath, commented: “The online course is ideal for anyone who has a family member with autism or works with someone with autism – whatever the level of prior experience. The issue today is not the lack of digital technologies offering support for autistic people, but how to find the best match between the person’s needs and capabilities with the available technological solutions. As a colleague with an autistic daughter said ‘a child with autism only has one childhood’, which highlights the need to identify the most appropriate technologies for each child. The project is an international collaboration with researcher Gerardo Herrera from the University of Valencia being funded by ERASMUS+ and will be made available in more languages in the near future”.
Nigel Smith, Head of Content at FutureLearn, said: “We’re very proud to be working with the University of Bath on such an important initiative. There is increasing research and interest about how technology can help individuals with autism so we’re delighted to provide the technology platform to help carers, teachers, and parents to find out about this latest thinking, to learn how to recognise the signs of autism and to get advice and insights about the solutions out there. And we also hope that the social element of our platform creates a supportive environment where learners can share and learn from each other’s experiences.”
As with all FutureLearn courses, the course can be taken for free or there is the option to upgrade for £69 to get extra benefits.
Notes to editors
About FutureLearn
“Pioneering the best social learning experiences for everyone anywhere”
Founded by The Open University in 2012, FutureLearn is a social learning platform, designed to support learning through conversation. It offers 5.7 million learners free online courses from world-leading UK and international universities, centres of research excellence and specialist education providers like the British Council, Creative Skillset and European Space Agency. FutureLearn is an international platform with over 75% of its users based outside of the UK.
About the University of Bath
The University of Bath celebrates its 50th anniversary this year as one of the UK’s leading universities both in terms of research and our reputation for excellence in teaching, learning and graduate prospects.
In the REF 2014 research assessment 87 per cent of our research was defined as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. From making aircraft more fuel efficient, to identifying infectious diseases more quickly, or cutting carbon emissions through innovative building solutions, research from Bath is making a difference around the world. Find out more: http://www.bath.ac.uk/research/
Well established as a nurturing environment for enterprising minds, Bath is ranked highly in all national league tables. We were chosen as the UK’s top university in the Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey 2015.
About the project
The project is funded by ERASMUS+ grant number: 2015-1-ES01-KA201-015946
See: SMART-ASD.EU
For more information, please contact:
Niamh O’Grady, Senior Communications Manager, FutureLearn
Email: niamh.ogrady@futurelearn.com
Rachel MacPherson, PR Executive, FutureLearn
Email: rachel.macpherson@futurelearn.com
Andy Dunne, Media / PR Officer, University of Bath
Phone: 01225-386319
