Using Simulated Learners and Simulated Learning Environments within a Special Education Context

The needs of special education populations require specific support to scaffold learning. The design and use of intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) has the potential to meet these needs. Difficulty in the development of these systems lies in their validation due to the ethics associated in studying learners from this population as well as the difficulty associated with accessing members of this learner group. This paper explores the use of simulated learners as a potential avenue for validating ITS designed for a special education population. The needs of special education learners are discussed. Potential avenues for employing simulated learners and simulated learning environments to test ITS, instructional materials, and instructional methods are presented. Lastly, the expansion of an educational game designed to develop emotion recognition skills in children with autism spectrum disorder is used to illustrate how simulated learning environments can be used to support the learning of these students.