Are teachers provided with enough training in neurodivergence?
With the new school year just days away, my interest was piqued this morning by a piece I read on the website of London’s New School of Psychotherapy & Counselling (NSPC), describing its postgraduate training programmes in neurodivergence.
The piece described how, according to recent research, one in four British teachers has not received any training in how to teach neurodivergent students. For many that have received training, the sheer amount of time those courses took makes them sound entry-level at best, box-tickingly inadequate at worst.
Take this classroom breakdown described by the NSPC:
“Think about a typical classroom of 30 pupils. On current estimates, somewhere between four and six of those students will be dyslexic; one or two are likely to be autistic; and two or three may be ADHD. One pupil might be dyspraxic (also known as developmental coordination disorder), and others may be living with dyscalculia or dysgraphia.”
It’s heartening to see the dyspraxia reference given how often DCD is missed out of lists of neurodivergent conditions.
Why training matters
The NSPC also describes how the British Psychological Society (BPS) assert that ‘correctional’ rather than inclusive approaches in the classroom can exacerbate poor mental health, with the second-order impact of increasing the risk of school refusal. Thank goodness, therefore, that the NSPC’s postgrad courses are available to teachers.
Looking back to my own childhood in the 1980s and ’90s, there was – dyslexia aside – no mention of any neurodivergent conditions, let alone any inclusive practice. Nor any discernible curiosity. My needs, for example, were entirely missed.
Things were better during my daughter’s recent childhood, but all talk was of the big three – dyslexia, autism and ADHD – with no mention of dyspraxia et al that I’m aware of. It’s only now she’s 17 that her dyspraxia symptoms have been professionally recognised and a diagnosis given.
(Earlier this week, by the way, I reviewed the BBC’s excellent new neurodivergence series, All Kinds of Minds, which, amongst other topics, explored the growth of neurodiversity awareness and provision in British schools. Check it out!)
The gradual journey to a more neuro-inclusive future
We’re on a journey, of course. The scary statistics quoted earlier won’t radically change overnight. Social progress tends to be evolutionary, not revolutionary.
But the existence of courses like the NSPC’s gives me hope for a more enlightened, more neuro-prosperous future.
Dyspraxia resources for teachers
Any teachers keen to know more about dyspraxia in the classroom can check out my blogs on how to spot dyspraxia in primary school children and how to identify dyspraxia symptoms amongst secondary school students.
