"I was watching her.
She walked out her
frontdoor to the
intersection,a she
looked left and then
crossed! I wanted to
shout out "STOP". I
repeat over and over
in my head,"Why
didn't she know to
stop? It was red..."
"
When experiencing a physical, emotional or psychological disorder, a daily task as simple as crossing the street with the instruction of a red light is often the moment of truth for a young person trying to attain independence. It is disorienting, confusing and chaotic!
Across the world there have been three prototypes (Maryland, Michigan in the USA and Bristol, London) set up to address this lack of independence aiming to teach young people to attain these skills in a safe and comfortable setting. The key to this development and design is transference when taking this simulation of reality and implementing it in day to day life.
Here, in Sydney, Australia, the aim has remained, yet the medium has shifted with the aid of gaming technology as a medium for such simulation. The success and data from post-evaluation of the other three facilities will inform the design decisions, but this new type of form can be somewhat compared to that of skills learnt by avatars in games such as Second Life. This centres the idea of gaming as the main tool to achieve lifeskills. Gaming becomes the light that guides these young people to a path of confidence.
On site, the stack is this light, a white glowing object that will be the centre, used as a screen to project the skill teaching games on. As the player moves up the levels of the building, so his skill set will grow encouraging...
- Problem solving
- Following directions
- Making choices
- Socialization
- Budgeting
- Communication
- Money Skills
Simulation becomes reality.
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