Neurodiversity Celebration Week, 18th to 24th March 2024

A chance to inspire your teaching practice, there is a full week of events for staff and students and many are open to the public, in person or online. View the full programme and book via the  Neurodiversity Week event page on the City website. Thanks go out to Sandra Guzman- Rodriguez, City’s Senior EDI Officer (Accessible & Inclusive Communities) for putting together an amazing programme for 2024 that shares and inspires practice.

I hope you find something that interests and inspires you,  Sandra Partington, LEaD

Teaching and Learning Focus, LEaD events

You might like to explore one these online events that are provided by colleagues from LEaD in collaboration with City colleagues and external experts in the fields of  Neurodiversity, AI and  Inclusive Teaching,  these are spaced over the week and most will be recorded, so sign up to access the recordings on catch up.

Tuesday 19th Diverse Minds: Leading and Thriving in Neurodiversity at Work

hosted by Dr Miranda Melcher

This session examines the pivotal role of inclusive leadership in transforming workplace practices to embrace neurodiversity. Our panel of experts, leading by example, will share insights on fostering an environment that values neurodivergent talents:

• Theo Smith, founder of  Neurodiversity at Work
• Professor Richard Ashcroft, a Senior Ambassador for Neurodiversity at City, University of London
• Dr Amanda Roestorf, Head of Research at Autistica

Thursday 21st LEaD Light Lunch: Could AI revolutionise the learning experience for neurodiverse students?

Join us to welcome Dominik Lukeš, the Assistive Technology Officer at the University of Oxford, who is an advocate for integrating technology to enhance productivity in reading and writing. With his Reading and Writing Innovation Lab, Dominik actively educates through workshops and encourages the exploration of devices and applications that support reading and writing. Dominik will be in conversation with Dr Julie Voce of City’s own AI task and finish group.

Friday 22nd LEaD Online Workshop: Making your teaching inclusive for neurodiverse and disabled students

This practical session explains and helps participants practise implementing research-backed general principles for inclusive teaching. The session is designed and facilitated by Dr Miranda Melcher and Dr Sylwia Frankowska – Takhari of City University.

It involves working through and discussing specific examples for making classrooms (in person and online) more inclusive. The workshop will cover topics including the importance of considering the needs of neurodiverse students in higher education, introduce general principles for inclusive pedagogy, and guide participants through a variety of real-world examples via breakout rooms.