Projects per year
Abstract / Description of output
ABSTRACT
Introduction: The wellbeing and participation of autistic school pupils suffers when teachers and peers have limited understanding and acceptance of their needs and experiences. The LEANS project has developed resources for mainstream primary schools to teach about neurodiversity, a higher-level concept covering many neurodevelopmental differences. The curriculum’s goals are to increase pupil and teacher understanding of neurodiversity and its impacts on school experience, and to promote inclusive actions and attitudes.
Methods: The LEANS resources were designed with a neurodiverse group of educators, and address 7 topics: introduction, classroom experiences, communication, needs and wants, fairness, friendship, and reflecting on our actions. They combine hands-on activities with storytelling and videos. A school-based evaluation study assessed whether LEANS resources were feasible in real classrooms, and if they successfully taught neurodiversity concepts and changed pupils’ attitudes and intended actions. 7 teachers delivered LEANS in their classrooms, across 4 mainstream Scottish primaries (Aug-Dec 2021). Using opt-in recruitment, 62 children’s quizzes and demographics were shared with researchers (female=36, mean age 9.84 years). 17.74% of participants had reported additional support needs (e.g. formal diagnoses like ASC, undiagnosed challenges).
Results: Teachers administered custom measures of neurodiversity knowledge and attitudes to their classes, before and after LEANS. Post-test scores showed that participating pupils demonstrated knowledge of the neurodiversity concepts contained in LEANS, and expressed more inclusive, accepting attitudes and intended classroom actions following LEANS participation, at statistically significant levels. This pattern applied to pupils both with and without reported neurodevelopmental diagnoses. Analyses were pre-registered.
Qualitative analyses of teacher diaries and child follow-up interviews are in progress and will be reported at the congress.
Discussion: Per feedback and quiz scores, LEANS appears to be a successful tool for introducing neurodiversity in primary schools and promoting acceptance. It offers a basis for ongoing classroom discussion and facilitating longer-term changes. LEANS is free and available worldwide (June 2022). While initially tailored to the UK and Ireland, its resources form a transferrable model of the concepts and strategies needed to teach children aged 8-11 about neurodiversity at school.
Introduction: The wellbeing and participation of autistic school pupils suffers when teachers and peers have limited understanding and acceptance of their needs and experiences. The LEANS project has developed resources for mainstream primary schools to teach about neurodiversity, a higher-level concept covering many neurodevelopmental differences. The curriculum’s goals are to increase pupil and teacher understanding of neurodiversity and its impacts on school experience, and to promote inclusive actions and attitudes.
Methods: The LEANS resources were designed with a neurodiverse group of educators, and address 7 topics: introduction, classroom experiences, communication, needs and wants, fairness, friendship, and reflecting on our actions. They combine hands-on activities with storytelling and videos. A school-based evaluation study assessed whether LEANS resources were feasible in real classrooms, and if they successfully taught neurodiversity concepts and changed pupils’ attitudes and intended actions. 7 teachers delivered LEANS in their classrooms, across 4 mainstream Scottish primaries (Aug-Dec 2021). Using opt-in recruitment, 62 children’s quizzes and demographics were shared with researchers (female=36, mean age 9.84 years). 17.74% of participants had reported additional support needs (e.g. formal diagnoses like ASC, undiagnosed challenges).
Results: Teachers administered custom measures of neurodiversity knowledge and attitudes to their classes, before and after LEANS. Post-test scores showed that participating pupils demonstrated knowledge of the neurodiversity concepts contained in LEANS, and expressed more inclusive, accepting attitudes and intended classroom actions following LEANS participation, at statistically significant levels. This pattern applied to pupils both with and without reported neurodevelopmental diagnoses. Analyses were pre-registered.
Qualitative analyses of teacher diaries and child follow-up interviews are in progress and will be reported at the congress.
Discussion: Per feedback and quiz scores, LEANS appears to be a successful tool for introducing neurodiversity in primary schools and promoting acceptance. It offers a basis for ongoing classroom discussion and facilitating longer-term changes. LEANS is free and available worldwide (June 2022). While initially tailored to the UK and Ireland, its resources form a transferrable model of the concepts and strategies needed to teach children aged 8-11 about neurodiversity at school.
Original language | English |
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Publication status | Published - 9 Oct 2022 |
Event | Autism Europe - ICE Kraków Congress Centre , Cracow, Poland Duration: 7 Oct 2022 → 9 Oct 2022 |
Conference
Conference | Autism Europe |
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Country/Territory | Poland |
City | Cracow |
Period | 7/10/22 → 9/10/22 |
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'A school-based evaluation study of a teacher-delivered, whole-class neurodiversity teaching programme (LEANS) to promote accepting and inclusive environments'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Finished
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LEANS Community: Amplifying the impact and reach of a new resource to teach children about neurodiversity (LEANS-C)
Alcorn, A., Fletcher-Watson, S. & McGeown, S.
1/03/22 → 28/02/23
Project: Research
Research output
- 1 Digital or Visual Products
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Learning About Neurodiversity at School: A resource pack for primary school teachers and pupils
Alcorn, A., Fletcher-Watson, S., McGeown, S., Murray, F., Aitken, D., Peacock, L. J. J. & Mandy, W., 9 Jun 2022Research output: Non-textual form › Digital or Visual Products