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Project Flip – Embracing difference

Isabelle Alexander, Head of Neurodiversity and Hidden Differences, introduces Project Flip, an initiative created to improve the inclusion of students who are neurodiverse or have hidden differences, and to spread understanding of their experiences

Why Project Flip?
Improved awareness and knowledge of neurodivergent conditions have resulted in an increasing number of students at WHS being identified as being neurodivergent or having hidden differences. This is not surprising as around 18% of the working population consider themselves disabled and the student body at WHS is representative of this.
One of the aims of our school is to build an inclusive community. We promote inclusion and collaboration within our community so that every student can access the teaching approaches and resources they need to achieve their potential. Where all are seen and treated as equals, all have equal opportunities to thrive.
Project Flip set out to increase understanding and acceptance of neurodiversity and hidden differences in the wider community and adapt how we approach teaching, learning and socialisation. By addressing these areas in the school setting, adopting teaching approaches that can reach all students and by making the environment more flexible and adaptable, we would be initiating change in our society as a whole.

How?
The students’ voices had to be at the heart of the project and listening to how our neurodivergent and hidden difference students felt about their educational experience was essential. They are the people with the understanding and knowledge of the difficulties faced daily and equally importantly, they are the people who will be shaping and leading the future. We did not set out with any fixed goals or outcomes in mind, as we hoped that they would develop and emerge organically – and indeed they did.
The project was not, however, without its hurdles. But after a poor start, over a series of weeks, a representative group of hidden difference and neurodivergent students met, agreed some key areas of discussion, and discussed!

Still from Project Flip video

What?
The first thing the students concluded was that for change to happen, people needed to care. A video of them speaking, with some of them appearing in it, was created and presented in an assembly to the senior school. This was extremely powerful and made fellow students and teachers more aware about how they experience school and life.
The next step was for them to present the findings of the project to the Senior Leadership Team. They wanted to discuss their shared thoughts, how they felt and what actions they would like to see as a result. This included practical advice for teachers such as the pacing of lessons, ensuring that instructions were written as well as spoken, not drawing attention to their difference, and explicitly letting them know when we (the teachers) were going off on a tangent! Suggestions were made about signage in the school and furnishings in the classrooms. They also asked for a dedicated space where they could find some peace in the day or go to meet. In addition, there was total consensus that when a PHSE session is planned to deal with neurodiversity and hidden differences that there should be self-advocacy and they wanted to be involved.

Outcomes
The impact of this project has already been seen in several ways; during one of our parent forums, parents started spontaneously talking about the assembly video, even though they had not seen it. It had prompted conversations in homes – change was starting to happen.
Our PHSE sessions have changed; we invited a mother and daughter both with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) to speak about their experiences. They were with us for the entire day, delivering a session to students, a training talk to teachers and finally an ‘in conversation’ information talk to parents that evening. During Autism Awareness Month, two young professional working women visited us and described what their life was like living with autism. Perhaps most effective of all, our Year 9 dyslexic students delivered a talk on dyslexia to the Year 7 students.
We have also held a “Question Time” where a panel of students with hidden differences candidly answered questions that had been sent in advance. The audience of teachers packed the Rutherford theatre. Panellists tackled questions such as: How can teachers make your school experience better? What is the one thing that teachers do that annoys you the most? How can we make the help subtle? How do you feel about going to university or the workplace with a hidden difference?
One of the outcomes that we had not anticipated was the camaraderie that developed within the group. For some, it was the first time, they had not felt alone in their difference. With this in mind, the Neurodiversity and Hidden Differences team will be starting a weekly lunchtime club where students can go informally to chat amongst themselves or for advice. We have also witnessed an increase in confidence our neurodivergent and hidden differences students, as their voices are being heard, awareness is increasing, and perceptions are changing.
This project was only possible because of trust and relationships. It would not have worked had we employed someone externally to run it or if the students had felt that nothing would be done as a result of it.

The future
The findings of the project have already been shared in a number of ways, including presentations at the Global Forum for Girls’ Education in Boston and the GDST Deputy Heads Conference. The Girls’ School Conference have also invited us to present. The momentum behind the idea is growing.
We are only on the start of our journey of increasing awareness, understanding and acceptance and are excited about continuing it from this point.

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To assess or not to assess?

Front of WHS

Isabelle Alexander, Specialist Teacher Assessor and Head of Learning Support at WHS, considers the merits of carrying out a diagnostic educational assessment.

We have all seen the news articles and reports about parents or carers who try to get as much help as possible for their children in school, particularly when public exams are on the horizon.  It would seem that they want their children to have an educational ‘label’ and will pay considerable sums of money to experts such as Educational Psychologists to try to achieve this, assuming that in so doing their children will gain a competitive edge.

At the other end of the scale, there are those parents/carers who refuse to accept or acknowledge that their child might have a learning difference worthy of further investigation and who reject all suggestions and advice from their child’s school. These parents are often convinced that it’s the child’s work ethic or the teaching in a school that needs to be addressed and indeed sometimes it does, but to dismiss the likelihood that there may be an issue worthy of further investigation with a child, might put the child at a disadvantage.

It is also true that students with certain educational needs are eligible to receive access arrangements in their GCSEs, A Levels and beyond, but most importantly, only once strict, regulated criteria are met, including, and in fact beginning with, evidence and support from the school.

The process of having a student assessed is about finding out what their strengths and weaknesses are and what, if anything, is having a detrimental effect on their learning and stopping them from achieving their potential.

The process

Educational Psychologists and Specialist Teacher Assessors assess for educational differences, some of which may lead to access arrangements in public examinations. They run batteries of tests that look at the child’s underlying ability, processing skills and attainment. They then produce a comprehensive report detailing the child’s profile. Other professionals may well be called upon in the instances where a student is displaying other symptoms, which could include difficulties with executive skills, socialising, maintaining attention, copying from the board, restlessness, excessive fidgeting, slow and/or poor handwriting – and school SENCos should be able to advise accordingly in these cases.

Advantages

The advantages of assessment are numerous regardless of any diagnosis:

  • Often a sense of relief is experienced by both parents/carers and child as the report clarifies why things have not always fallen into place or why, for example, it takes longer to complete a piece of work. Contrary to expectations, this can lead to an increase in self-esteem and confidence as there is a realisation that there is nothing ‘wrong’ with the child; they might simply process things differently.
  • Educational assessments provide a greater understanding of learning strengths and weaknesses (we all have them), which then enables teachers to make appropriate accommodations and differentiate their teaching so the student can maximize their potential.
  • Assessments may also explain why work takes longer and why the student can’t always finish a task in class.
  • Assessments may explain why the student has to work harder to keep up.
  • Assessments can also explain why the student might feel awkward or does not ‘fit in’. They provide them with at least a part of their identity that they might have been struggling to understand.
  • Assessments usually provide answers and as such, give explanations and ways forward.

Disadvantages

  • Naturally, parents and carers are concerned that any diagnosis will result in fewer opportunities, particularly when it comes to Further Education. It is therefore important to know that all universities, including Oxbridge, accept students with learning differences and neuro-diverse profiles and most significantly have departments that offer support where it is needed.
  • There is a fear that the child will be ‘labelled’. ‘Labelling’ has come to have such negative connotations but I have yet to hear it used in an adverse way in a school in the context of a learning difference or where a child has an educational need. A diagnosis is not about attaching a label, it is about getting the right support and expertise in place to maximize self-esteem and potential. Knowing that a child has, for example, ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder), Dyslexia or issues with attention, no matter how mild, changes perceptions, and reactions for the better both at home and in school as it increases understanding and that has to be a good thing, doesn’t it?
  • It is possible that a diagnosis becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy; teachers and parents might expect less from a child with learning differences and stop challenging them or the child might assume that they are incapable and stop trying. However, focussing on the child’s strengths and positive personal characteristics and offering encouragement and support usually stems feelings of doubt and negative thoughts.
  • It is expensive. Maybe, but a great deal of time, professional expertise and work go into assessing a child resulting in a full diagnostic assessment. This major piece of work that identifies strengths, weaknesses, with recommendations for support, could and most importantly, does, prove invaluable.

Concluding remarks

Clearly, it can be argued that I have a vested interest in promoting diagnostic assessment; after all, it goes with my job and I have spent many hours training to do this.  However, I have not always worked in this field, I came to it following the assessment of my daughter, who at primary school could not learn rhymes, the days of the week or to read, but seemed intelligent. Her school recommended that she be assessed. The assessment revealed that she was indeed a bright child with excellent underlying ability who had dyslexia. Interventions were put in place at school and she attended sessions with a specialist tutor. The result is that at 21 years of age, she still has dyslexia. She also has the most amazing work ethic and organisational skills and has done extremely well academically. She firmly believes that diagnosis and intervention made a huge difference to her in a multitude of ways.

Learning differences and neuro-diverse profiles are often invisible and are not always easy to spot and are not always identified by the school, no matter how many checks are put in place. Young women and high achievers often mask their differences as they do their best to fit in. Not wanting to attract attention and stand out from the crowd, they work excessively at home to try to keep up. The views of parents are therefore relevant; if you notice for example, that your child is spending an extraordinary amount of time on their homework, or that their reading speed appears to be slow or that they have difficulty remembering things or communicating, call the SENCo at your school, discuss your concerns and observations and let them investigate further.

For me, there is no question or doubt in my mind. When a school suggests that an assessment might be useful, it will be; whether or not a firm diagnosis is made, you will gain a deeper understanding of your child’s learning profile and your child will ultimately feel happier in themselves.

Learning differences do not discriminate; they are not a measure of intelligence or ability and they can be present in anyone. They are certainly not a barrier to achievement. So why is there still so much stigma attached to them?