An Analysis of Interventions with Students with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Using Gamified Geometric Thinking

Studies have been indicating the use of digital resources for interventions with children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), especially when it comes to supporting communication and social interaction. However, there is research that suggests the use of digital environments not only in these aspects but also to assist them in their academic knowledge, such as in their mathematical skills, specifically related to geometric thinking. From this context, Active Methodologies point to various ways of rethinking traditional teaching, one of them being gamification, which can be understood as the use of game elements in non-game situations. Gamification has shown significant benefits for this audience, proving to be an effective tool to aid in the development and learning of these individuals. Therefore, this article in its complete form presents an excerpt from a doctoral thesis that seeks to understand the geometric thinking of nine autistic participants through gamified activities in their real mode. The research is divided into two stages: the first stage involves a preliminary survey with five teachers through structured interviews, aiming to investigate the demand for gamified activities for students with ASD, as well as indicating possibilities for such activities. From the Discursive Textual Analysis (DTA) of these interviews, three categories emerged: opportunities, skills, and limitations. As for the second stage, conducted with nine participants, who are students with ASD, interventions were carried out with these activities in their real mode, which will be implemented digitally later. Through the researcher's observation analysis, based on recorded videos of the interventions, three subcategories related to the initial categories can be identified: potential interactions (opportunities); strategies for geometric thinking (skills); and gamification in the real mode (limitations). The first subcategory emerged due to the need to describe how students with ASD interacted both with the researcher and with the activity. Given the need to showcase how the students solved the activities, as well as the strategies they employed to complete the pairings correctly, the second subcategory emerged. Lastly, the third subcategory arises from limitations that were observed during the interventions, which were still in the real mode and should be taken into account when implementing the digital phase. Therefore, it is evident that there are some points to consider for the activity in its digital mode: implementing gamified activities that incorporate elements from the participants' daily lives (ADLs); understanding the strategies employed by the participants to solve gamified activities; being mindful of the weaknesses of the gamified activity in its real mode, allowing for the provision of resources in various formats.