Software for autistic students will compete in global contest

From inspiration came an innovative digital application to aid special education.

A team of three students from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde won this year’s local Microsoft Imagine Cup 2012 search for the best software design, earning them a ticket to the World Finals in July in Sydney, Australia.

Team Divided by Zero beat four finalists from other top universities across the country for its project KidCAMP, a web and mobile application designed especially for autistic children.

Team leader Jason Josol came up with the project from the experience of a cousin, a person with autism who improved his learning ability and skills by using a computer.

“Our team was inspired by my cousin who had ASD [autism spectrum disorder] and had improved much through technology. We realized that the educational software being made available to these students were quite limited and expensive, which was why we started to think of a way to give equal educational opportunities for all,” said Josol.

“This is what led us to create KidCAMP. With this program, educators and families will be able to tailor-fit their programs according to the needs of these children,” he added.

KidCAMP takes advantage of kids’ fascination with computer technology by creating a software that can be used as a special education tool for students with autism.

A unique feature of KidCAMP is the wordbox, a click-on box that introduces a word through the use of audiovisual output, a technique deemed effective in capturing students’ attention and increasing learning.

Josol said the application could be used by parents, teachers and organizations working with children with ASD.

“We have a lot of good entries this year and we are happy that students have definitely shown great potential. Team Divided by Zero will represent the country this July in the Imagine Cup 2012 World Finals and we are hopeful that we can do well globally. Their creativity to solve real-world challenges is visible in their KidCAMP project,” said Tim Vergel de Dios, audience marketing manager of Microsoft Philippines.

This year’s competition challenged young designers and developers from across the country to design a software that responded to the theme “Imagine a World where Technology Helps Solve the Toughest Problems.”

Most entries aimed to provide solutions to health concerns.

A team from the University of the Philippines introduced TraceIt, a tracing game to improve motor skills of special students.

A “hybrid” team composed of students from the Asia Pacific College, Ateneo de Manila University, Far Eastern University, East Asia College, and De La Salle-CSB created Agimat [AIDS Guidance, Intervention and Medical Assistance Terminus], which provides information on HIV, the AIDS-causing virus. It also automates registration for HIV testing.

Imagine Cup is the world’s most prestigious student technology competition staged annually by Microsoft Corp.

“We want to encourage more students to join and showcase Filipino ingenuity and innovation at the global arena, and grab the opportunity not only to compete against the best student developers and programmers around the world but also to prove that tomorrow’s leaders are equipped with the passion and talent to solve the world’s problems,” said De Dios.

At the Sydney finals, student teams from around the world will compete in seven categories: Software Design, Game Design, IT Challenge, Kinect Fun Labs Challenge, Windows Metro Style App Challenge, Windows Azure Challenge and Windows Phone Challenge.