Neurodiversity Education
Free Neurodiversity Educational Resources for Therapists, Teachers, & Families
What are the differences between Neurodiversity, the Neurodiversity Paradigm, & The Neurodiversity Movement?
Neurodiversity
Neurodiversity simply means the natural differences in how people’s brains work.
“Neurodiversity is a biological fact. It’s not a perspective, an approach, a belief, a political position, or a paradigm.” – Dr. Nick Walker
Neurodiversity encompasses neurodivergent individuals, whose brain and cognition functioning diverge from expected functioning (such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD], developmental coordination disorder, or dyslexia (Chapman & Botha, 2022) and neurotypical individuals, whose brain functioning falls within the socially accepted range (Kapp, 2020).
There are “multiple, collective origins of the neurodiversity concept” – (Botha et al., 2024).
Neurodiversity Paradigm
“The neurodiversity paradigm starts from the understanding that neurodiversity is an axis of human diversity, like ethnic diversity or diversity of gender and sexual orientation, and is subject to the same sorts of social dynamics as those other forms of diversity—including the dynamics of social power inequalities, privilege, and oppression.”
“The pathology paradigm asks, “What do we do about the problem of these people not being normal,”
whereas the neurodiversity paradigm asks, “What do we do about the problem of these people being oppressed, marginalized, and/or poorly served and poorly accommodated by the prevailing culture?” (Walker & Raymaker, 2020)
Neurodiversity Movement
The neurodiversity movement is an identity, human rights and social justice movement. The movement began in the 1990s as a reaction against the extremes of traditional (cure and eradicate) autism advocacy. The movement’s roots can be traced to Sinclair’s influential 1993 essay, “Don’t Mourn for Us,” which urged parents to move away from seeking a cure for their child’s autism and instead embrace acceptance. (Ne’eman & Pellicano, 2022)
“The neurodiversity movement opposes the medical model’s focus on finding causes and cures, instead embracing autism (and other forms of neurodivergence) as a fundamental part of a person’s identity.” (Kapp et al., 2013)
Misinformation about neurodiversity, the neurodiversity paradigm, and the goals of the neurodiversity movement is bolstered by professionals, researchers, parents, and even autistic people, adopting, and sometime appropriating the language and symbols of the neurodiversity movement without fully understanding the movement’s key principles of “acceptance rather than conditional acceptance based on meeting neurotypical standards” (Roberts, 2021). This watered-down approach to the neurodiversity movement is referred to as neurodiversity lite, or performative neurodiversity (den Houting, 2019; Neumier, 2018; Roberts, 2021).
To learn more about the history and goals of the neurodiversity movement, you can download a free book: Autistic community and the neurodiversity movement: Stories from the frontline
Essential Reading on Autism Through the Lens of the Neurodiversity Paradigm
Welcome to the Autistic Community – The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network – ASAN
Start Here: a guide for parents of autistic kids – The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network – ASAN
What I Mean When I Say I’m Autistic: Unpuzzling a Life on the Autism Spectrum by Annie Kotowicz
Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity by Devon Price, PhD
Unmasking for Life: The Autistic Person’s Guide to Connecting, Loving, and Living Authentically by Devon Price, PhD
Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity by Steve Silberman
Therapist Neurodiversity Collective‘s Articles on Autism, Neurodiversity-affirming therapy and education, AAC, schools and IEPs, feeding, apraxia, and advocacy for your child.
After an Autism Diagnosis: 13 Necessary Next Steps For Parents – Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism
The Therapist Neurodiversity Collective does not earn any profit from recommending these books.
They are included solely because they provide valuable insights into autism from the perspective of the neurodiversity paradigm.
Neurodiversity Affirming Therapy - What to look for
“Finding the Right Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) For Your Autistic Child” – Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism
Roberts, J. A. (2020, May 14). “Finding the Right Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) For Your Autistic Child”.
For Whose Benefit?: Evidence, Ethics, and Effectiveness of Autism Interventions – Autistic Self Advocacy Network
Autistic Self Advocacy Network. (2021, December). For Whose Benefit? Evidence, Ethics, and Effectiveness of Autism Interventions.
Eight Signs of a Respectful & Empathetic Therapist – Therapist Neurodiversity Collective (2020)
Navigating Safe Therapies – Therapist Neurodiversity Collective (2020)
Which Therapies Actually Help Autistic Children? – Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism
Des Rocha Rosa, S. (2022, July 8) “Which Therapies Actually Help Autistic Children?”
How to Avoid Therapy Scams – Luna Rose (2023)
WBAI 99.5 fm Pacifica Radio NYC, “Neurodiversity Experts Talk”
What is Identity-First Language & Why Does it Matter?
Avoiding Ableist Language: Suggestions for Autism Researchers
“In this commentary, we describe how language is used to communicate about autism within much of autism research can reflect and perpetuate ableist ideologies (i.e., beliefs and practices that discriminate against people with disabilities), whether or not researchers intend to have such effects. Drawing largely from autistic scholarship on this subject, along with research and theory from disability studies and discourse analysis, we define ableism and its realization in linguistic practices, provide a historical overview of ableist language used to describe autism, and review calls from autistic researchers and laypeople to adopt alternative ways of speaking and writing. Finally, we provide several specific avenues to aid autism researchers in reflecting on and adjusting their language choices” (Bottema-Beutel et al., 2021).
“There will not always be consensus on what autism is or how we should talk about autistic people—even among autistic people ourselves—but to ignore those autistic voices that have broken through into the academy lest they not be representative of every single autistic person is short-sighted. Linguistic framing, including the use of PFL, has material consequences for the autistic community, especially those who are non-speaking. The priority of research should be to centre autistic people (both speaking and non-speaking, and with, and without learning disabilities) in the conversation around the language used to describe autism and autistic people. If current studies are not representative enough of the entire autistic population the solution is to conduct more research” (Botha et al., 2021).
Editorial Perspective: The use of person-first language in scholarly writing may accentuate stigma
“Person-first language is used most frequently to refer to children with the most stigmatized disabilities.” ” Studies with participants of all ages, including professionals and scholars, consistently demonstrate that developmental disabilities (e.g. intellectual disability and autism) are more stigmatized than physical disabilities and sensory disabilities. In Web of Science titles, PubMed articles and titles, and Google Scholar articles, person-first language is used most frequently to refer to children with the most stigmatized disabilities (an average 93% for intellectual disability and 75% for autism); person-first language is used less frequently to refer to children with less stigmatized disabilities (18% for deafness; 28% for blindness; 32% for physical disability), and person-first language is used least frequently to refer to children with the least stigmatized condition (<1% for giftedness)” Gernsbacher, 2017).
Our Facebook Pages & Some of the Neurodiversity-Affirming Pages We Follow
Therapist Neurodiversity Collective believes that our therapy practices and educational approaches must contribute to a world in which autistic and other neurodivergent people enjoy equitable equal access, rights, and opportunities. We advocate for neurodiversity acceptance, agency, self-determination, dignity, respect of individual rights, sensory needs and preferences, and a client’s, patient’s or student’s right to communicate “no”.
In addition to our own Facebook page and group, here are some of the neurodivergent educators, advocates, activists, and supportive allies we follow on Facebook. These individuals resonate with our values, ethics, and goals, and we appreciate the insights they share: