Abstract
The paper presents a design case that draws inspiration from rap music as a way to tell stories rhythmically, with simple instruments for accompaniment. Rhythm, rhymes and flow are key features of rap music. In this study, we attempted to apply rap principles and dynamics to a very specific field of application: the treatment of dyslexia. Our hypothesis is that fast, fun, bodily music could compensate the cognitive treatment usually used in dyslexia therapy, and avoid the need for children to engage in abstract cognitive exercises that are often frustrating and result in a lack of motivation. The paper describes the incremental prototyping process carried out to design the activity and the musical instruments used to experiment with rap music in therapeutic sessions. In particular, we designed a DJ console and a beat amplifier made of reused cardboard, wearable sensors and open-source software. Rapid prototyping and rapid re-adaptation of the system's material and technological components allowed us not only to fine-tune the tools but also to generate new knowledge about the behaviour of people with dyslexia and raise new questions for study.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | 8th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction: Fun, Fast, Foundational (NordCHI'14, Helsinki, Finland, October 26-30, 2014) |
Place of Publication | New York |
Publisher | Association for Computing Machinery, Inc |
ISBN (Print) | 978-1-4503-2542-4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2014 |
Event | 7th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, NordiCHI 2012 - Copenhagen, Denmark Duration: 14 Oct 2012 → 17 Oct 2012 Conference number: 7 |
Conference
Conference | 7th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, NordiCHI 2012 |
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Abbreviated title | NordiCHI 2012 |
Country/Territory | Denmark |
City | Copenhagen |
Period | 14/10/12 → 17/10/12 |
Other | 2nd International Workshop on the Interplay Between User Experience Evaluation and Software Development, I-UxSED 2012 - In Conjunction with the 7th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, NordiCHI 2012 |