Fergus Murray

Neurodiversity at School

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(and wherever children are learning)

Neurodiversity is the idea that different brains work differently, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, even though some people are disabled, in this society, as a result. This idea came out of the autistic community (and that’s where I tend to focus) but it provides a vital lens for thinking about all kinds of information processing difference: prominently ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia and learning disabilities. 

There are many aspects of education that can be hostile to people with unusual styles of communication and processing. Understanding this is essential for inclusive education, whether in a mainstream setting or elsewhere.

I strongly encourage anyone with any connection to education to read books and blogs and other publications by autistic people, ask your pupils what it is that they find difficult, and what they think helps. Watch Pablo, read and watch A Kind of Spark, watch the new Heartbreak High. Talk to any neurodivergent friends and family, draw parallels and notice differences. Think about your own cognitive style: how neurotypical do you think you are? What does it mean for you?

These are essential concepts that everyone working in education, or living and working with neurominorities in any context, should be aware of:

Here are some of the things I’ve written about autism and neurodiversity:

  1. Neurodiversity is for Everyone (video with water, audio, written; this also appears in The Neurodiversity Reader)
  2. Making Education Work for the Next Generation of Neurodivergent Pupils (also a video)
  3. Autism Tips for Teachers
  4. Autistic Skill Sets: A Spiky Profile of Peaks and Troughs
  5. Monotropism – Explanations
  6. Isn’t Everyone on the Spectrum? (audio)
  7. Starting Points for Understanding Autism
  8. More On Autism

Here are recordings of some of my talks at conferences and so on:

 Other extremely useful resources, grouped by creator: