*A note: this blog post follows emerging recommendations from autistic people and advocates to use “identity-first” rather than “person-first” language. The post uses the term “autistic person” rather than “person with autism” to affirm autistic identity. However, individual preferences may differ and this is still an area of discovery as the language around autistic identity is shaped over time.

Nicole Richard Williams asked us to begin by discussing our own experiences with autism or neurodiversity. As we went around the room, we spoke of autistic children, friends, or other family members. Faculty mentioned wanting to better meet the needs of their students, or even understand what those needs were. Everyone in the room agreed that, regardless of diagnosis or neurocognition, we all wanted more tools for reaching a diverse set of learners. This presentation provided us with just that.

Nicole began by helping us understand three major areas of neurocognitive differences that many autistic people experience: neuroconnectivity, sensory processing, and inhibition and movement. Compared to neurotypical people, autistic people have fewer neural connections between areas of the brain that are further apart, and more connections with closer areas of the brain. This pattern of connectivity could lead to specific areas of interest and expertise in autistic individuals, but can also underwrite some communication challenges and make it more difficult for some autistic people to understand connections between new material. Autistic people often experience sensory information differently, either as amplified or diminished relative to most neurotypical people. This experience of sensory perception means that eye contact, fluorescent lights, or everyday noises can feel overstimulating (or not stimulating enough). Finally, autistic people often have lower Purkinje cell volumes relative to neurotypical people, which is a cell responsible for helping us inhibit movements. As a result, autistic people can also sometimes move or speak in ways that are considered inappropriate in a neurotypical setting.

Nicole helpfully gave some tips to help us design a course that would be welcoming not only to autistic people, but to many of our students:

1. Connect with students over the main areas of interest. When possible allow them to shape assignments to be personally meaningful or relevant.
2. Provide multiple ways to access information, such as closed-captioned videos.
3. Use literal, direct information, and understand that students communicating directly with you may not be unkind—assume sincerity.
4. If possible, keep fluorescent lights off and doors closed to minimize outside noise.
5. Provide fidget aids to help students stay engaged.
6. Give students time to as questions or respond to information.
7. Create stable and predictable class structures by posting all assignment information in advance.
8. Give students explicit instructions about how to understand when they have done something right (for instance, in a theater class, what does excitement look like specifically in the body).

As is so often the case in sessions attending to individual learning needs, I found myself thinking about University Design for Learning (UDL)—an area of SoTL that Nicole herself mentioned in her presentation. UDL holds that small changes we can make in the design of our courses can benefit not only those students needing special supports, but all students, including students we may not be able to identify. Like curb ramps, often installed for compliance with ADA requirements for wheelchair access, they can also make life easy for a whole host of people the law did not originally intend to benefit, including those with other mobility issues, or more simply with strollers, shopping carts, or just an unusually heavy load to carry. Spotlighting autism can help us better see the needs of individual students, but designing for autistic students and other neurodiverse individuals can help everyone.

Find Nicole’s slide presentation here.