People of determination to display assistive technology skills

Dubai - This is the second assistive technology event by Al Noor since the first one in 2015

Hasan and Zahra, aged 9 and 8 respectively, suffer from cerebral palsy.
Yet, the children can have a conversation, using Assistive Technology (AT) that compensates for a student's skills deficits or area(s) of disability. Both students of Al Noor Training Centre in Dubai, along with a bunch of fellow determined ones, welcomed visitors using AT at a press conference announcing an assistive technology initiative at the centre, from October 29 to November 3, 2017.
Displaying confidence, Hasan used a motorised wheelchair to escort visitors around the centre and also used an adapted keyboard to present some videos of the centre. He was seen using an adaptive, heightened plate to feed himself while conversing with Zahra, who cannot speak at all yet used a customised communication app on her tablet to reply to Hasan.
Another autistic student with communication difficulties welcomed the guests using a speech-to-text app and his peer with limb weakness used an adapted DSLR camera to take pictures of the audience. With that, Al Noor Training Centre in Dubai on Monday displayed how it has made AT part of its intervention goals.
This was just a preview of what to expect at Al Noor Assistive TechX 2017, to be held at Al Noor Training Centre in Al Barsha that will highlight the importance of assistive technology and how integral it is to improve the functional capabilities of a person with disabilities.
This is the second assistive technology event by Al Noor since the first one took place in 2015.
"The event seeks to advocate access, participation and inclusion of people of determination with a focus on assistive technology. Technology is now part of the mainstream line of every field and we feel there is a great deal of potential of use of technology in special needs. Through this event, we have put together a unique concept to ensure that we are raising a holistic community awareness about AT and facilitating the inclusion of the determined ones in mainstream activities," said Isphana Al Khatib, of the centre director.
Al Khatib added: "The unique and different elements of the event this include the region's first Hackathon for special needs (on October 29-30) - in partnership with Microsoft Gulf - to identify 'real people with real challenges' for whom their teams will be hacking for solutions."
"This will bring together teams of professionals and students who will use their skills to develop assistive technology solutions. The resulting ideas will be developed further and be useful to a much larger audience," she added.
The initiative will be made up of five interactive areas available to all attendees. These will include workshops for parents/caregivers and conferences for professionals in the field of special needs to learn about the latest advancements in AT, with a line-up of top speakers in the field of AT; an exhibition area where suppliers can display their latest AT equipment, an AT Experience Zone, with live interactive experiences to help people better understand its impact; and a free Robotics Workshop for children over 8, with a focus on special needs solutions.
saman@khaleejtimes.com