Joanna Ball

In this study, the design philosophies behind, along with motivational and academic outcomes of an immersive VR-assisted online special education curriculum are described. Difficulties associated with allocating special education resources in US public school settings form a rationale for the creation of the program. The possibility for a portable immersive learning approach to activate students’ individual and collaborative problem-solving abilities and grant students greater freedom and control in learning is considered. As a foundation to understand the power of immersive learning, Gordon Pask’s Cybernetic Theater, and his broader ideas on responsive technology assemblages applied to the performing arts and architecture developed in collaboration with figures such as Joan Littlewood and Cedric Price are drawn from. The CadetNet special education curriculum, which relies on a design framework rooted in Pask’s work, utilizes an assemblage of videoconferencing, headset VR simulations, and academic games in varied sequences to give students ways to engage in content acquisition, collaboration, and expression through multimedia avenues. Teachers modulate instructional delivery and their use of this technology assemblage in real-time to meet the participants’ needs. Results from a three-week summer enrichment program conducted with six students diagnosed with neurodevelopmental learning differences (e.g., Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Specific Learning Disability and their comorbidities) are shared. Narrative inquiries of transcripts from mathematics and language arts lessons indicate how Pask’s design framework was applied to implement the curriculum, and that student activity ensuing during the program echoed both the hopes and concerns associated with Pask and his colleague, Joan Littlewood’s broader design philosophies. Student surveys and standardized test scores reveal a maintenance of pre-experimental academic prowess, and adaptive changes in their self-determined motivational profiles, which have been shown to be a strong correlate of student interest in extant literature. Results showcase how sociocognitive effects of CadetNet resonated with Pask’s proposed outcome of heightened audience interest central to the Cybernetic Theater.