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Museum Exploratory Behaviors Study
As a postdoctoral researcher with Dr. Rain Bosworth's NTID PLAY Lab, I am working on the MEBS project, spearheaded by Dr. Rain Bosworth and Dr. Ali Fitch. The Museum Exploratory Behaviors Study examines how deaf and hearing children explore objects in a museum environment. We aim to understand children's natural tactile exploration patterns and how exploratory behaviors connect to language skills, cognition, and other factors.Want to learn more? Visit the MEBS project page at the NTID PLAY Lab Website!
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(MEBS is funded by NIH Grant #1R15DC021349-01)
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Top image: The exterior of The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, NY features a colorful, modern building with large "PLAY" letters in front and vibrant landscaping. The museum's distinctive architecture includes geometric shapes in bright colors, with rainbow-colored pathways leading to the entrance surrounded by planted garden areas.
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Bottom image: Inside the museum, a vibrant yellow-walled exhibit space displays interactive learning stations including eye charts, educational posters, and hands-on activities. Two cartoon-style cutout figures of children are positioned in the foreground, depicting a playful, child-friendly environment for museum visitors.
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Embodied Learning in Immersive Virtual Reality for DHH Adults and/or Sign Language Users
Working with the Action & Brain Lab from Gallaudet University, our research explores how virtual reality (VR) can enhance learning for deaf and hard-of-hearing people who use American Sign Language. We are investigating whether interactive VR creates better learning experiences than watching videos, particularly for STEM subjects like chemistry. Sign language is naturally visual and physical, making VR a powerful tool that aligns with how deaf people communicate and process information. I used EEG technology to measure brain activity in sensorimotor regions—areas that activate when we perform or observe physical movements—while participants learned chemistry concepts. We also used psychological measures to investigate learning gains and user motivation.
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This is my dissertation research, which I successfully defended in May 2024. My published dissertation can be found here. If you have any difficulties accessing the document, please don't hesitate to reach out for a PDF copy.
Top image: A virtual reality setup displays an interactive chemistry experiment interface with colorful molecular models (green and purple spheres) and laboratory equipment. The VR environment shows "Level 2/3" and "Reagents" labels, suggesting an educational science simulation for learning chemistry concepts.
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Bottom image: A white VR headset and matching hand controllers are arranged on a clean white background. The setup appears to be an Oculus Quest or similar standalone virtual reality system, with the headset positioned in the center and two wireless controllers flanking it on either side.