Social competence (SC) is related positively with building and maintaining of positive social relations – intimate and professional. Social competence is positively connected with the development of pro-social behaviors and the restriction of destructive behaviors (Denham & Burton, 2003). SC is linked positively with academic ability and success in learning (Blair, 2002, Klimoski & Donahue, 2001). SC is related positively to the development of self concept and personality self-actualization (Raver & Knitzer, 2002). SC is among eight key competencies for lifelong learning, which is independent of the general and intellectual competence which has its own path of development. However, some internal links can be detected between different types of competence and creativity. Many of the skills that build social competence are present in creativity and its various manifestations. Empirical studies conducted over the past decade show the importance of SC in building effective interpersonal relationships, professional activities and personality. But despite the importance of SC as a key competence, its systematic building within the school education and adults’ education, as well as in vocational training is undeveloped. We accept that the development of SC is the basis for development of creativity in different social areas as well as a condition to increase motivation for development of future professional activity and creative attitude towards solving problems. The reason for the project are: 1) To tackle the barriers for children and youth with disabilities (mild learning disabilities, sensory impairments, low level social skills, specific learning difficulties -dyslexia, dyspraxia, autism spectrum disorder, ADHD). 2) To meet the targets for improving basic skills levels . 3) To improve learning and understanding skills and encourage progression. "Intelligent Serious Games for Social and Cognitive Competence (ISG for Competence)" proposal will help to improve the quality, attractiveness and accessibility of the opportunities for lifelong learning available by developing interactive mobile games and 3D stimulations by user generated scenarios for acquiring transversal competencies such as social competence and creativeness to increase the social integration and personal development of children and youth with disabilities. The project is targeting children & youth with disabilities teaching them creativity and social competencies. Additionally the project products can be used by intermediaries, special education centers, school teachers, special education trainers, training providers, universities (department of pedagogy, psychology, computer and instructional technology, assistive technology). The proposal addresses to improve the quality and efficiency of education, training, enhancing creativity and innovation by using serious games and 3D simulations as pedagogy is definitely creative , attractive and efficient learning. The project will also promote equity, social cohesion and active citizenship. This project is dedicated to conceptualizing and development of social competence related to personal, and social development through creation of mobile 3D serious games. A set of 3D interactive simulations and mobile games regarding social competence will be created in 5 partner countries in single player mode to allow users to experience a pre-authored SC scenario. Project consortium represents a multidisciplinary team for achieving the aims and objectives of this proposal. Each partner comes with unique expertise and experience either in the field of social competencies, creativity skills, digital competencies or interactive technologies and gaming, policy makers in school or education etc. Project partners are universities, consulting enterprise, SME, NGO and mobile multimedia programming and development company from Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovenia and Turkey.
This project was dedicated to conceptualizing and development of Social Competence (SC) for personal, social and professional development through creation of mobile serious games for children with learning difficulties and/or mild disabilities. SC is positively related to building and maintaining social relations, both intimate & professional. SC is also positively connected to the development of pro-social behaviors and the restriction of destructive behaviors, academic ability and success in learning, and development of self concept and personality self-actualization. SC also restricts involvement in destructive behaviors and emergence of interpersonal conflicts and ruptures which lead to non-acceptance and rejection, destructive conflicts resolution, and emotional and behavioral problems induced by inefficient social relations. As such, helping children with learning difficulties to improve their social competence is a very important contribution to the overall well being of the society, and the main concept behind our project. The specific objective of this project were to: 1.tackle the barriers for children and youth with disabilities; 2.meet the targets for improving basic skills levels; 3.improve learning and understanding skills and encourage progression. The target group for the project was children and youth with: 1.with mild learning disabilities (slow rate of maturation, reduced learning capacity and inadequate social adjustment). 2.mild sensory impairments. 3.low level social skills. 4.specific learning difficulties: a.dyslexia (reading problem) b.dyspraxia (coordination and movement problem) c.autism spectrum disorder (social deficits and communication difficulties, stereotyped or repetitive behaviors and interests, sensory issues, and in some cases, cognitive delays) d.Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The partners involved were: 1.Istanbul Sehir University (coordinator), Turkey 2.University of Pannonia, Hungary 3.University of Maribor, Slovenia 4.ZGURA-M Ltd., Bulgaria 5.PhoenixKM, Belgium 6.Uluslarasi Bilim, Inovasyon, Teknoloji ve Egitimi Destekleme Dernegi (UBITED), Turkey 7.ACT Creative, Turkey From a high level, the following main activities were undertaken and successfully completed: An extensive scoping report was carried out in all partner countries, involving about 500 users. A user-centred design with iterative cycles of testing and refinement was used to ensure the serious games being developed were accessible, usable and engaging. A set of 10 games for Social Competence (SC) were created, some in 3D, to allow users to experience a pre-authored SC scenario. The games were mobile and run on smartphones and tablets, as well as laptops and PCs. Pilot studies showed the serious games engage the children in role-playing social competence scenarios to explore differences, conflicts, and ultimately to find resolutions. The main results were a suite of e-learning materials, e-games and accompanying paper-based resources with learning objects to raise social skills. Among other results, we developed and released a set of 10 mobile games: AndMath, Cars Racing, Labyrinth, Manage Yourself, Card Pairing Memory, Weekend Wonderland, Into the Forrest (3D), Minecraft ISG (3D), Sequence (3D), and Memori (3D). These were created using an iterative and user-centric development process. We first performed an extensive Scoping Report with almost 500 individuals in all partner countries to identify and analyze target audience, training needs, tasks, and environments of use, for materials adaptation and development of the games. We then worked on the appropriate accessible learning objects, assuming the principles of collaborative blended learning which involves a student/person with mild learning difficulties and a trainer/teacher. Next, we developed the serious games themselves, worked on the trainers’ and users’ manual, and finally field tested them in a pilot study of children with learning difficulty and/or disabilities. In parallel, we also developed a collaborative mobile learning platform, for the hosting the games. Extensive pilot studies were conducted in all partner countries and showed very promising results in terms of the children’s both enthusiasm to play the games and improvement in their SC. The longer term benefits include improving: Basic Skills – literacy, numeracy, ICT. Personal Development Skills – self-esteem, confidence building and motivation; managing anger; managing stress; working with other people Key Skills, defined by the DFES in the UK as “essential skills that underpin success in education, lifelong learning and personal development.”, to include; communication, application of number and information technology working with others, improving own learning and performance or problem solving Work Skills - Work preparation and sustainability skills to individual need, which might include travel training; communication support etc.