Exploration of videochat for children with autism

Autism is characterized by language delays and difficulties in social interactions. Remote synchronous communication technologies may provide children with autism with new opportunities to practice social interaction when in-person interaction may not be possible. We conducted an empirical investigation, asking children with autism to interact with a teacher using two different vide-ochat prototypes. We found that the teachers were able to engage the children in social interactions using videochat, using certain techniques to draw the children away from distractions or fixations. We describe the effective strategies used by the teachers and discuss opportunities and challenges in using a traditional videoconferencing layout compared to an alternative side-by-side layout.