KMDI Speaker Series – Computational Kids: Research, Intervention, and Practice for Child Development in a Digital World

This event is jointly sponsored by KMDI and the Department of Computer Science

Guest Speaker: Professor Gillian Hayes, University of California, Irvine

Abstract

Child development increasingly takes place in a world saturated by technology and media. Children are both producers and consumers of media. At the same time, technologies provide increasing opportunity for both the study of and intervention into child development. In this talk, I will describe the relationship between Human Computer Interaction and child development, both typical and delayed development. I will describe some of the opportunities and challenges for childhood technologies in terms of both research and intervention, highlighted with examples from the design and evaluation of custom, innovative technologies and interventions developed in my research lab.

Bio

Gillian Hayes is Robert A. and Barbara L. Kleist Professor in Informatics in the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences and in the School of Education and School of Medicine at UC Irvine. Her research interests are in human-computer interaction, assistive and educational technologies, and health informatics. Her research focuses on supporting vulnerable populations, such as children and under-represented groups, in engaging with design and research activities. She also serves as the Director of Technology Research for the Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders and the Faculty Director for Civic and Community Engagement in the Division of Teaching and Learning at UC Irvine.