Apert syndrome and the use of assistive technology in special education and rehabilitation

Uvod: Postoji stalna potreba da se upoznaju i razumeju razlike i potrebe dece sa specifičnim razvojnim problemima kako bi se obezbedio odgovarajući tretman i mogućnost za prilagođeno i svima dostupno obrazovanje. Asistivne tehnologije i pomagala omogućavaju osobama koje ih koriste veći stepen nezavisnosti i samostalnosti, bogatiji i aktivniji život. Takođe im omogućavaju pristup sadržajima koji bi im bili potpuno nedostupni ili teško dostupni bez upotrebe pomagala. Apertov sindrom je identifikovan kao oblik kraniosinostoze i često je udružen sa teškoćama u intelektualnom razvoju i procesu komunikacije. Cilj: Cilj ovog preglednog rada je da ukaže na postojanje teškoća u iniciranju kontakta, održavanju interakcije i dvosmerne komunikacije sa socijalnim okruženjem kod osoba sa Apertovim sindromom kao i mogućnosti primene asistivne tehnologije pri olakšavanju ovih teškoća. Metod: Za pretragu postojeće literature korišćen je pretraživač Google Scholar, SCIndex, ProQuest, i servis Konzorcijuma biblioteka Srbije za objedinjenu nabavku (KOBSON). Pretraživani su radovi na srpskom i engleskom jeziku. Ključne reči korišćene prilikom pretrage su bile Apertov sindrom, asistivna tehnologija, rehabilitacija, augmentativna i alternativna komunikacjia. Rezultati: Rad je podeljen u konceptualne celine. U uvodnom delu dat je prikaz fizičkih i saznajnih karakteristika i mogućnosti njihovog tretmana. Druga konceptualna celina rada sa teorijskog aspekta obuhvata mogućnosti obrazovanja i rehabilitacije primenom asistivne tehnologije i asisitivne augmentativne tehnike, primenjene u cilju pomoći i olakšanog razvoja i funkcionisanja osoba sa ovim sindromom. Objašnjen je i pojam asistivne tehnologije u kontekstu ciljeva istraživanja. Zaključak: Predmet rada su deca sa Apertovim sindromom i koncept asistivne tehnologije, a rezultati rada obuhvataju najvažnije postavke i podatke dobijene komparativnom analizom i sintezom stavova različitih autora u ovoj oblasti u poslednjih nekoliko godina. Doprinos rada odnosi se na praktične vrednosti rada, oličene u mogućnostima adaptacije prepoznavanja osnovnih karakteristika ovog sindroma u odnosu na mogućnost adaptiranja obrazovnih, psiholoških, specijalno-pedagoških i govorno-jezičkih metoda osposobljavanja ovih lica, a u odnosu na to ponuđena konkretna rešenja iz računarske tehnologije primenljiva u nastavnim i aktivnostima svakodnevnog življenja.Introduction: There is a constant need to know and understand the differences and needs of children with specific developmental problems in order to provide appropriate treatment and the opportunity for tailored and accessible education. Assistive technologies and aids provide people who use them with a greater degree of independence and autonomy, a richer and more active life. They also give them access to content that would be completely inaccessible or difficult to access without the use of aids. Apert syndrome, which has been identified as a form of craniosynostosis, is often associated with difficulties in intellectual development and the communication process. Aim: The aim of this review is to point out the existence of difficulties in initiating contact, maintaining interaction and two-way communication with the social environment in people with Apert syndrome, as well as the possibility of applying assistive technology to alleviate these difficulties. Method: Google Scholar, SCIndex, ProQuest, and the service of the Serbian Library Consortium for Unified Procurement (KOBSON) were used to search the existing literature. Papers in Serbian and English were searched. The key words used during the search were assistive technology, alternative and augmentative communication, Apert syndrome, intellectual disability. Results: The paper is divided into conceptual units. In the introductory part, a presentation of physical and cognitive characteristics and possibilities of their treatment is given. The second conceptual unit of work from the theoretical aspect includes the possibilities of education and rehabilitation using assistive technology and assistive augmentative techniques, applied in order to help and facilitate the development and functioning of people with this syndrome. The notion of assistive technology in the context of research goals is also explained. Conclusion: Children with Apert syndrome and the concept of assistive technology are the subject of the paper, and the results include the most important settings and data obtained by comparative analysis and synthesis of views of various authors in this field in recent years. The contribution of the work refers to the practical values of the work, embodied in the possibilities of adapting the recognition of the basic characteristics of this syndrome in relation to the possibility of adapting educational, psychological, special pedagogical and speech-language training methods of these persons in teaching and activities of daily living