Supporting Neurodiversity in The Classroom

The concept of neurodiversity posits that neurological differences, as seen in individuals with autism, ADHD, OCD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and other neurological conditions, represent natural human variations. A significant percentage of the population is considered neurodivergent, and the complexity of their conditions is widely misunderstood.

With more students being diagnosed with neurological conditions, educators and instructors must ensure they get the support they need. You have a crucial role to play to ensure neurodiverse students are understood, appreciated, and encouraged to gain confidence in leveraging their unique abilities to succeed in school and in life.

Using the information and tips below you can support neurodiversity in the classroom and beyond.

1. Create an Open and Inclusive Environment

One of the best ways to increase engagement with neurodiverse students is to create a classroom environment where students are free to ask questions if they don’t understand something without fear of judgment. Creating an open and safe environment eliminates obstacles to participation, engagement, and learning for neurodiverse students.

This also improves the students’ self–confidence, making them more likely to speak up. One way to promote an inclusive environment is through active listening. You can use verbal and non-verbal cues to demonstrate that you are making an effort to listen.

Since neurodiverse students may struggle to communicate their thoughts effectively, allow them time to process and articulate their responses rather than push them to participate. Remember that communication is not just verbal. It’s beneficial to encourage neurodiverse students to communicate in ways that they feel most comfortable.

2. Invite Your Students to Be Themselves

It’s important to let your students, both neurodiverse and neurotypical, know that human excellence comes in different packages and invite them to be themselves. Sometimes it can be difficult to discern your neurodiverse students' individual strengths.

If so, watching and asking can be a good place to start. The students may not know their strengths either, but observing them pursue their area of interest can provide valuable insight. Make a point of finding out where your neurodiverse students feel most at ease and competent.

You can then plan for periodic lessons where they have an opportunity to communicate or learn in ways that leverage their strengths, even if it means tweaking your regular classroom routine. This inclusivity will help foster trust and connection.

3. Learn About Their Strengths and Weaknesses

Neurodiverse students have strengths and weaknesses that may or may not be a result of their specific neurological conditions. For instance, neurodiverse students are more likely to be good at creative subjects and struggle with Science or Mathematics. Also, autistic students are typically good with patterns and details.

By understanding the unique strengths and weaknesses of neurodiverse students, you can better understand their needs and the teaching and learning strategies that will be most effective. You can gather this information from various sources, including the students themselves, parents, caregivers, or even specialists to create a bigger picture of your neurodiverse students’ needs.

4. Implement Diverse Teaching Routines

One effective way to improve lesson accessibility to neurodiverse students is by formulating and implementing diverse teaching and learning strategies in the classroom. This requires you to consider your students’ learning profiles. Students have different thought processes and respond differently to different teaching/learning methods.

Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of your neurodiverse in the classroom can help you formulate effective lesson plans or present new information. This means you have to take time and check in with those students. With this personalized insight in hand, you can gauge how the students respond to your teaching/learning strategies and adapt according to their responses.

5. Always Presume Competence

One of the biggest mistakes you can make as an educator is to assume some students cannot be successful academically based on poor communication or odd behavior. Many people assume that neurodivergence is related to IQ. Neurodiverse students with high IQs can achieve below their potential if they aren’t learning in ways that leverage their strengths.

It’s important to give your students the opportunity and freedom to rise to expectations and even surpass them. Limiting students’ expectations due to their neurodiverse status has always been a hindrance to their self-confidence, and academic progression. While it’s important to be understanding and flexible, it’s equally beneficial to set high and realistic expectations for your neurodiverse students.

6. Promote Self-advocacy

Talk openly and honestly with neurodivergent students about their unique experiences, both positive and negative, encouraging them to share the same. It’s important as an educator to allow such students to articulate and reflect on the individual learning accommodations they need.

By listening to your students actively, you encourage a classroom culture of inclusion and trust. You can show neurodivergent students that they belong by delivering on their unique requests. By involving them in determining how teaching will unfold in the classroom, the neurodiverse students are encouraged to take ownership of their learning journey.

Overall, as an educator or instructor, it’s vital today to understand that your classroom isn’t just diverse but also neurodiverse. Supporting neurodiversity in the classroom helps neurodivergent students achieve, promotes inclusivity in school, and removes learning barriers. When you consider neurodiversity in classroom, the way you deliver information, the activities your students participate in, and the assessments you use to track learning empower different types of students to achieve more in their own capacities.