Qazi Fazli Azeem
Qazi Fazli Azeem is an accomplished educator and designer specializing in art, design, inclusion, and entrepreneurship. He holds an MFA in Design from the Dynamic Media Institute at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, where he was a Fulbright Scholar and a visiting researcher at the MIT Media Lab. With over 22 years of interdisciplinary experience in Visual Arts, Graphic Design, Interaction Design, and Product Design, Qazi has spent 15 years in higher education, developing programs such as the B.Des degree at KITE University and the MMS Master of Media Science degree at SZABIST University. His notable projects include Curious Learning, a semi-finalist in the MIT $100k competition, and collaborations with acclaimed Artist Olafur Eliasson. He has represented Pakistan at global forums, including the United Nations in New York, the US State Department's Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Kenya, the UN WHO International Conference on Autism in Bhutan and regional Autism conferences in the USA, India, Bangladesh and Qatar. A co-author of "Been There. Done That. Try This!: An Aspie's Guide to Life on Earth," Qazi's research interests encompass Interaction Design and Autism Spectrum Disorders. He currently teaches studio art, design, and media courses at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco.
MIT documentary on collaboration with Olafur Eliasson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-82r-A8Psw
Presentation at the United Nations in New York: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdjc-UYD2XY
Co-Authored book on self-advocacy for Autism Spectrum of Disorders: https://www.amazon.com/Been-There-Done-That-This/dp/1849059640
Supervisors: Jan Kubasiewicz, Brian Lucid, and Joseph Quackenbush
Phone: +923362456606
Address: Ifrane, Morocco
MIT documentary on collaboration with Olafur Eliasson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-82r-A8Psw
Presentation at the United Nations in New York: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdjc-UYD2XY
Co-Authored book on self-advocacy for Autism Spectrum of Disorders: https://www.amazon.com/Been-There-Done-That-This/dp/1849059640
Supervisors: Jan Kubasiewicz, Brian Lucid, and Joseph Quackenbush
Phone: +923362456606
Address: Ifrane, Morocco
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Papers by Qazi Fazli Azeem
Researchers have found that child prodigies have greater number of autistic traits, particularly with attention to detail. Half of the families of the child prodigies studied reported autism diagnoses in first or second degree relatives, indicating strong links to genetics.
I was aware of savant syndrome and its potential in higher education due to my experiences as an educator, in addition to my role as the South Asian self-advocate for ASD. I knew about magazine and website articles from the US, describing extraordinary abilities and splinter skills such as hyperlexia, perfect pitch, pattern recognition and photographic memory. I wanted to create tools and experiences for neurotypical students, adapted from diverse learning strengths of autistic children with extraordinary abilities. Would these blended, individualized interfaces stimulate neurotypical students to learn effectively and efficiently, in the same way that they help gifted people on the autism spectrum?
In order to answer my researchable question, I created sensory-neutral interface design case studies for learners with ASD, which helped them access digital educational content (online or offline). These interfaces can also be used by neurotypical
learners, providing more tools to access digital resources. Additionally, I created an adaptive experience for both neurotypical as well as autistic learners, inspired by self-directed interest-based learning, a common trait of learners on the autism spectrum. My case studies and interaction design projects allow greater choices for both educators and students,
where few existed before. My goal is to facilitate inclusion by using dynamic media technologies that help optimize learning for a greater number of people.
The first version of the research was completed in 2010 as a collaborative project of Mauj Media Collective with the support of the ASEF’s project officer, Jerneja Rebernak. It has been further updated in July 2011 by the research’s coordinator Atteqa Malik and Valentina Riccardi from ASEF (Asia Europe Foundation) and the European Comission.
I am a credited research contributor for this report, which also noted my interaction with the Pakistan Software Export Board and the movement to have an academia-industry linkage to promote Pakistan's growing game design & development industry.
Autism Network (Journal), Vol. 6, Issue 2., National Centre for Autism, Dehli, India. August 1, 2011
Researchers have found that child prodigies have greater number of autistic traits, particularly with attention to detail. Half of the families of the child prodigies studied reported autism diagnoses in first or second degree relatives, indicating strong links to genetics.
I was aware of savant syndrome and its potential in higher education due to my experiences as an educator, in addition to my role as the South Asian self-advocate for ASD. I knew about magazine and website articles from the US, describing extraordinary abilities and splinter skills such as hyperlexia, perfect pitch, pattern recognition and photographic memory. I wanted to create tools and experiences for neurotypical students, adapted from diverse learning strengths of autistic children with extraordinary abilities. Would these blended, individualized interfaces stimulate neurotypical students to learn effectively and efficiently, in the same way that they help gifted people on the autism spectrum?
In order to answer my researchable question, I created sensory-neutral interface design case studies for learners with ASD, which helped them access digital educational content (online or offline). These interfaces can also be used by neurotypical
learners, providing more tools to access digital resources. Additionally, I created an adaptive experience for both neurotypical as well as autistic learners, inspired by self-directed interest-based learning, a common trait of learners on the autism spectrum. My case studies and interaction design projects allow greater choices for both educators and students,
where few existed before. My goal is to facilitate inclusion by using dynamic media technologies that help optimize learning for a greater number of people.
The first version of the research was completed in 2010 as a collaborative project of Mauj Media Collective with the support of the ASEF’s project officer, Jerneja Rebernak. It has been further updated in July 2011 by the research’s coordinator Atteqa Malik and Valentina Riccardi from ASEF (Asia Europe Foundation) and the European Comission.
I am a credited research contributor for this report, which also noted my interaction with the Pakistan Software Export Board and the movement to have an academia-industry linkage to promote Pakistan's growing game design & development industry.
Autism Network (Journal), Vol. 6, Issue 2., National Centre for Autism, Dehli, India. August 1, 2011