High School Grade
  • Project
  • 3 weeks

Visionary App Quest: Accessibility Unlocked!

Heather Fullerton (xWF)
3A-AP-14
3A-AP-13
3A-AP-15
Students structure information and data in meaningful and useful ways.
Students listen to and incorporate feedback and ideas from others.
+ 35 more

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to engage high school students in the exploration and application of machine learning through the development of a multi-screen mobile app that addresses specific accessibility challenges. By leveraging Teachable Machine and App Inventor, students will design innovative solutions that utilize computer vision to enhance accessibility for individuals with mobility or visual impairments. This hands-on project fosters critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving skills, while aligning with academic standards and competencies, ultimately empowering students to create meaningful technology that can positively impact their communities.

Learning goals

Students will develop a multi-screen mobile app using machine learning algorithms to address accessibility challenges, enhancing their understanding of computer vision and app development. They will apply critical thinking to evaluate and select control structures, using lists to simplify solutions and create prototypes that leverage algorithms. Through collaboration, students will refine their communication skills by providing and incorporating feedback, tailoring their presentations, and effectively conveying complex concepts. The project will foster academic mindsets by encouraging students to engage with peers, set goals, and reflect on their learning experiences, ultimately building confidence in their ability to solve complex problems and see the relevance of their work to real-world applications.
Standards
  • 3A-AP-14 - Use lists to simplify solutions, generalizing computational problems instead of repeatedly using simple variables.
  • 3A-AP-13 - Create prototypes that use algorithms to solve computational problems by leveraging prior student knowledge and personal interests.
  • 3A-AP-15 - Justify the selection of specific control structures when tradeoffs involve implementation, readability, and program performance, and explain the benefits and drawbacks of choices made.
Competencies
  • Communicate effectively. - Students structure information and data in meaningful and useful ways.
  • Communicate effectively. - Students listen to and incorporate feedback and ideas from others.
  • Communicate effectively. - Students provide constructive and appropriate feedback to their peers.
  • Communicate effectively. - Students tailor their message for the intended audience.
  • Communicate effectively. - Students communicate complex concepts to others in both written and oral presentations.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students feel a strong sense of belonging within a community of learners and value intellectual engagement with others.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students understand learning as a social process and actively learn from one another and support each other in pursuit of learning goals.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students readily engage in the construction of meaning and understanding through interaction with peers.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students trust in their own capacity and competence and feel a strong sense of efficacy at a variety of academic tasks.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students see themselves as academic achievers and expect to succeed in their learning pursuits.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students believe that hard work will pay off in increased knowledge and skills.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students are motivated to put in the time and effort needed to build a solid knowledge base and to accomplish important goals.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students perceive the inherent value of content knowledge and of learning and developing skills.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students see the relevance of school work to their lives and interests.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students understand how work they do now will benefit them in the future.
  • Develop academic mindsets. - Students know that future learning will build upon what they know and learn today.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students set a goal for each learning task, monitor their progress towards the goal, and adapt their approach as needed to successfully complete a task or solve a problem.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students know and can apply a variety of study skills and strategies to meet the demands of a task.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students monitor their comprehension as they learn, recognize when they become confused or encounter obstacles, diagnose barriers to their success, and select appropriate strategies to work through them.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students work well independently but ask for help when they need it.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students routinely reflect on their learning experiences and apply insights to subsequent situations.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students are aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and anticipate needing to work harder in some areas.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students identify and work towards lifelong learning and academic goals.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students enjoy and seek out learning on their own and with others.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students anticipate and are prepared to meet changing expectations in a variety of academic, professional and social environments.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students delay gratification, refocus after distractions, and maintain momentum until they reach their goal.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students use failures and setbacks as opportunities for feedback and apply lessons learned to improve future efforts.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students care about the quality of their work and put in extra effort to do things thoroughly and well.
  • Learn how to learn. - Students continue looking for new ways to learn challenging material or solve difficult problems.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students are familiar with and able to use effectively the tools and techniques specific to a content area.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students formulate problems and generate hypotheses.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students identify data and information needed to solve a problem.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students apply tools and techniques specific to a content area to gather necessary data and information.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students evaluate, integrate, and critically analyze multiple sources of information.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students monitor and refine the problem-solving process as needed, based on available data.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students reason and construct justifiable arguments in support of a hypothesis.
  • Think critically and solve complex problems. - Students persist to solve complex problems.

Products

Students will collaboratively design and develop a multi-screen mobile app using Teachable Machine and App Inventor. The app will incorporate computer vision to address a specific accessibility challenge, such as improving navigation for individuals with visual impairments or enhancing mobility support for users with physical disabilities. Throughout the project, students will create prototypes, conduct user testing, and refine their app based on feedback, culminating in a final presentation showcasing their innovative solutions.

Launch

Begin the project by inviting students to participate in an interactive workshop where they experience various accessibility challenges through simulations. Following this, introduce them to real-world examples of apps that utilize machine learning for accessibility, such as voice recognition tools or object identification apps. Facilitate a brainstorming session where students identify specific accessibility challenges they are passionate about addressing. Encourage them to share personal stories or community observations to ground their project ideas in real-world contexts. Conclude the launch by forming project teams based on shared interests and initial ideas.

Exhibition

At the conclusion of the project, students will present their mobile app prototypes in a community showcase event, inviting peers, teachers, and local accessibility advocates to provide feedback. Each team will demonstrate their app's functionality and explain how machine learning and computer vision were utilized to address specific accessibility challenges. Students will engage in a Q&A session, allowing them to articulate their design process and reflect on the impact of their solutions. This exhibition will foster a collaborative learning environment and highlight the real-world relevance of their work.