The school integration of children of developmental age, especially those with autism spectrum disorder, is far from simple. There are many stakes and limits that often do not allow it in the necessary time and manner.
A startup, Fifth Ingenium, aims to overcome them all with the help of innovative solutions. "We are confident that the technology can be used to circumvent the effects of disability," says one of the founders, the computer engineer Antimo Musone.
How is it possible?
Fifth Ingenium has created a "kit" consisting of some "intelligent" objects and specific software (it can also be installed on the electronic blackboards supplied to schools) which offers educational paths and experiences. It is also possible to create new ones, safeguarding both the didactic aspect and the adherence to the program followed by the other students.
Fifth Ingenium got incentives from the program Smart & Start Italy, a fund that rewards innovative startups with high technological content. The call for applications supports projects with an amount of expenditure included between 100 thousand euros and 1,5 million euros: loans that are used to purchase goods and bear the costs of business management. For startups in Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Puglia, Sardinia and Sicily you are entitled to an extraordinary discount. In that case the 20% of the funding is non-refundable. The founders of Fifth Ingenium are Antimo Musone e Matthew Valoriani, computer engineers and Dominic Letizia, lawyer.
Fifth Ingenium: versatile growth
The project is broad and takes into account different aspects of the interaction. It is not a tool to be adopted in a passive form, but by its nature it is modular (A kit consists of several programmable "cubes" that can be used by students) and object-oriented. The goal is to find and exploit the lowest common denominator between different types of subjects.
Part of the project is linked to the development of their own activities by teachers, and perfectly responds to the philosophy of activating the autonomous participation of all school subjects.
In summary, Fifth Ingenium takes its first steps towards a school of new conception. Almost personalized. A school that can simultaneously guarantee a harmonious development for all, respecting even the great differences in skills and knowledge.
