Neurodivergence resource bank showcase

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi32.1394

Keywords:

neurodivergence, community of practice, collaboration, terminology

Abstract

An awareness of neurodiversity is important for educators as there has been an increase in the number of neurodivergent students accessing higher education (HE) in recent years (HESA, 2022). Additionally, universities have a legal obligation under the Equality Act 2010 to provide anticipatory reasonable adjustments to reduce barriers to learning (Equality Challenge Unit, 2010).

In this wildcard session, the authors presented the journey of the ALDinHE Neurodiversity/ Inclusivity Community of Practice (CoP). They invited new members to become involved with the CoP. CoPs are ‘socially configured spaces that necessarily involve learning as an aspect of membership’ (Tummons, 2018, p.4). Community members can become involved by joining the bi-monthly meetings, hosting a session on a topic they are passionate about, or reviewing submissions for the Neurodivergence Resource Bank.

The session offered delegates the chance to explore the Neurodivergence Resource Bank. This open-access repository is available through ALDinHE’s website, meaning all HE staff can access the resources. This is key as all HE staff ‘should be aware of inclusive teaching practices, to ensure an equitable learning experience for all students’ (Dettmer and Welton, 2023, p.64). Participants gave feedback on the submissions. They were also encouraged to submit their resources to it. This session explained how to submit resources and the benefits of evidencing impact for professional development.

Author Biographies

Karen Clark, Arts University Plymouth

Karen Clark is a Learning Development Advisor at Arts University Plymouth. She is passionate about ensuring neurodivergent students have an equitable learning experience in higher education. Her MA in Education was centred around dyslexia, using poetry as a creative response to students’ learning experiences. She is the co-chair of the Neurodiversity/Inclusivity Community of Practice and a Senior Fellow of Advance HE.

Jennie Dettmer, University of Hertfordshire

Jennie Dettmer is an Academic Skills Adviser for the Centre for Academic Skills Enhancement (CASE) in the Business School at the University of Hertfordshire. She co-chairs the Neurodiversity/Inclusivity Community of Practice. Jennie is a Senior Fellow of Advance HE, a Certified Leading Practitioner of ALDinHE, and holds an MA in Education (SEND and Inclusion). Her research focuses on neurodivergence in higher education.

References

Brown, L. (2011) ‘The significance of semantics: person-first language: why it matters’, Autistic Hoya, 4 August. Available at: https://www.autistichoya.com/2011/08/significance-of-semantics-person-first.html (Accessed: 21 August 2024).

Dettmer, J. and Welton, K. (2023) ‘Diversity in our expertise: empowering neurodivergent students within learning development’, in A. Syska and C. Buckley (eds) How to be a learning developer in higher education: critical perspectives, community and practice. Abingdon: Routledge, pp.62-70.

Equality Challenge Unit (2010) Managing reasonable adjustments in higher education. Available at: https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets.creode.advancehe-document-manager/documents/ecu/managing-reasonable-adjustments-in-higher-education_1578587125.pdf (Accessed: 2 March 2023).

Fallin, L., Davison, E., Spencer, G. and Tomlinson, T. (2023) ‘Supporting accessible learning resource design with Designing for Diverse Learners’, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 26, pp.1-8. Available at: https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi26.924 (Accessed: 5 August 2024).

Haider, S. and Cubberley, S. (2024) ‘“Autistic people”, not “people with autism” and the problem of double empathy’, ALDinHE Neurodivergence Resource Bank. Available at: https://aldinhe.ac.uk/product/resource-bank/neurodivergence/autistic-people-not-people-with-autism-and-the-problem-of-double-empathy (Accessed: 5 August 2024).

HESA (2022) Table 15: UK domiciled student enrolments by disability and sex 2014/15 to 2020/21. Available at: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/table-15 (Accessed: 2 March 2023).

Tummons, J. (2018) Learning architectures in higher education: beyond communities of practice. London: Bloomsbury.

Welton, K. and Dettmer, J. (2023) ‘Increasing neurodiversity awareness through a community of practice’, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 29, pp.1-8. Available from: https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi29.1126 (Accessed: 5 August 2024).

Downloads

Published

31-10-2024

How to Cite

Clark, K. and Dettmer, J. (2024) “Neurodivergence resource bank showcase”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (32). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi32.1394.

Issue

No. 32 (2024): Special Edition, ALDinHE Conference Proceedings and Reflections

Section

Conference Proceedings

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).