International conference INS HEA

17-19 March 2016 at Cité des Sciences, Paris, France.

Within the series of conferences about “sensory issues and disability” (“Olfaction, memory and learning” in
2009, and “Listening, acting, music and brain plasticity” in 2011), this conference deals with the sense of
touch. Research programs aim to better understand the main principles underlying the sense of touch
(proprioceptive vs. exteroceptive touch, tactile perception and kinesthetic movements), as was done for
vision or hearing (Dupin, Hayward & Wexler 2015). Yvette Hatwell (1986) and her collaborators (Streri,
1991; Hatwell, Streri, Gentaz, 2000) showed long ago that touch was a high performance learning tool.
Tactile and visual modalities interact very early in the life of a sighted baby, and touch allows blind people
to understand the environment and how space is made up. Although it is rarely used in some cultures and
rarely worded, touch is essential for some disabled people in their daily lives as a communication and
learning tool. This is obviously the case for blind and severely visually impaired people, but also deafblind
people (Souriau, 2013), those hindered in their verbal communication, or people with multiple disabilities for
whom this is the preferred mode of communication. Last, touch is rarely used by non-disabled children. Yet
research carried out by Edouard Gentaz shows that for preschool students, using haptic exploration of
raised letters helps them connect their visual representations and their phonological representations –
thereby eventually helping them learn to read and write.

This symposium aims to:

• Identify current scientific knowledge about touch.
• Show how the use of touch, interacting with other senses and with language, may foster learning processes, autonomy and access to culture, particularly for people with disabilities or special needs, but also for non-disabled people.
• Allow participants to meet and exchange views so as to mutualize good practices and skills in this field.

The specific focus will be tactile modality, as it fosters knowledge among young people with visual
disabilities (thanks to braille, tactile pictures, raised drawings, visuo-tactile interfaces) and access to
communication for young disabled people who experience issues in this regard.

This conference is intended for all people – researchers, students, teachers, educators, therapists, culture
professionals, parents, disabled and able people – who are interested in research on sensory modalities
and the effects of senses on perception, cognition, emotion, behavior; the links between touch, learning
and memory; and the implications of research on special adjustments for people with disabilities.

Oral presentations or posters may consist of scientific contributions (psychology, neurosciences, computer
science, educational sciences, anthropology, philosophy...) or reflective practice on educational, cultural
and pedagogical practices.

The call for proposals focuses on three thematic lines:

• Research in psychology and neurosciences in the field of sensoriality, particularly haptics.
• Research and experiments in the educational and pedagogical domains: teaching active touch to children and teenagers, tactile communication, braille, raised images, creating tactile devices for all as part of “universal design”.
• Touch, communication and knowledge among children with multiple sensory or cognitive impairments.

Scientific committee: Mélissa Arneton (INS HEA-Grhapes), Michel Bris (INS HEA), Anne Chotin (INS
HEA-SDADV) Hoëlle Corvest (Universcience), Edouard Gentaz (University of Geneva, CNRS), Vincent
Hayward (Isir - Pierre & Marie Curie University, Paris), Bénédicte Leclercq (Universcience) ; Nathalie Lewi-
Dumont (INS HEA-Ghrapes), Minna Puustinen (INS HEA-Grhapes), Jacques Souriau (University of
Groningen), Danièle Toubert–Duffort (INS HEA-Grhapes), Bertrand Verine (Praxiling, University of
Montpellier)

Organizational committee: Olivia Brachet (INS HEA), Hoëlle Corvest (Universcience), Yannick de
Bouillane (INS HEA), Marylise Lainard (INS HEA), Nathalie Lewi-Dumont (INS HEA-Ghrapes), Séverine
Maillet (INS HEA), Nel Saumont (INS HEA)

Guidelines for submitting oral presentation / poster proposals:

Please send your proposals for contributions, in French or English, in PDF format (12pt font Times New
Roman, 1.5 line spacing, 2.5cm margins). Proposals must include the presentation or poster’s title, a
summary of max. 500 words, 3 to 5 keywords, bibliographic references (max.10). Participants will clearly
indicate the desired format for their presentation (oral or poster) and the type of contribution (scientific or
critical personal statements). Please state the name, organizational affiliation and mailing address of the
author(s) and send your proposal as an email attachment to: severine.maillet@inshea.fr

Key dates:

Abstract submission deadline: September 21, 2015
Notification of acceptance: October 15, 2015
Conference: March 17 & 18, 2015 (and March 19 as part of the Semaine du Cerveau)

Conference proceedings are planned for publication.

For any further information, please contact Séverine Maillet: severine.maillet@inshea.fr      

Références bibliographiques / Bibliographic references:

Bara, F., Gentaz, É. & Colé, P. (2004). Quels entraînements de préparation à la lecture proposés aux
jeunes enfants de maternelle? in É. Gentaz & P. Dessus (Eds), Comprendre les apprentissages. Sciences
cognitives et éducation (pp. 11-25). Paris: Dunod.
Bara, F. & Gentaz, E. (2011). Haptics in teaching handwriting: The role of perceptual and visuo-motor skills.
Human Movement Science, 30, 4, August, 745–759.
Bara, F., Gentaz, E., Colé, P. & Sprenger-Charolles, L. (2004). The visuo-haptic and haptic exploration of
letters increases the kindergarten-children’s understanding of the alphabetic principle. Cognitive
Development, 19, Issue 3, July–September, 433–449.
Dupin, L., Hayward, V. & Wexler, M. (2015, January). Direct coupling of haptic signals between hands.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112, 2, 619–624.
Gentaz, É. (2009). La main, le cerveau et le toucher. Paris : Dunod.
Hatwell, Y. (1986). Toucher l’espace : la main et la perception tactile de l’espace. Lille : Presses
universitaires de Lille.
Hatwell, Y., Streri, A. & Gentaz É. (dir.). (2000). Toucher pour connaître : psychologie cognitive de la
perception tactile manuelle. Paris : PUF.
Hatwell, Y., Streri, A. & Gentaz, E. (2003). Touching for knowing. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins
Publishing Company.
Heller, M. & Gentaz, E. (2013). Psychology of touch and blindness. New York: Psychology Press.
Souriau, J. (2013). Comprendre et communiquer avec ceux qui ne parlent pas.