TANGIBLE INTERFACES FOR AN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: CHALLENGES AND POTENTIALITIES IN TEACHER EDUCATION

The use of tangible interfaces for educational purposes represents an assistive technology resource with significant potential for enhancing education by increasing student engagement and motivation. The primary challenges associated with the use of tangible tabletops in educational settings are the high costs of commercial products, the lack of software for programming and utilization tailored to educational needs, and the difficulty in using and creating applications. This paper presents a digital platform designed for producing tangible educational resources aimed at inclusive education, based on a low-cost tangible tabletop, along with the evaluation and validation of its application. A methodology was developed for creating applications, and 35 undergraduate students participated in the process, utilizing the editor to create applications for tangible tabletops focused on inclusive education. They exhibited strong interest and provided positive feedback on the technology's utility and the editor's usability. The platform serves as an assistive technology solution that employs an intuitive and user-friendly authoring tool for creating educational resources, enabling applications to be run on tangible tabletops and simulated on computers and mobile devices. Tangible tabletop applications can be utilized in inclusive education as a technological mediation tool, supporting pedagogical activities for conducting experiments, presenting content and narratives, and solving challenges and games.