The Design of Educational Software for Children with Severe Learning Difficulties

Abstract

The emergence of widespread educational computing has resulted in a proliferation of software, much of which adheres to a simplistic interpretation of behaviourism. This paper argues that much of the software developed for use by children in need of remedial education is inappropriate, and that a more relevant approach can be found in cognitive learning theory. These issues are discussed with reference to the application of principles derived from cognitive and language development models to the design of software for use by children with severe language difficulties.