Culturally Relevant Pedagogy for Neurodiversity

ABSTRACT

This article applies the insight of culturally relevant pedagogy to neurodiversity. The neurodiversity paradigm reframes autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other neurodevelopmental conditions as natural human diversity rather than disorders to be cured. Culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) is an equitable approach to teaching that proactively includes students from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. This article discusses the implications of CRP for neurodiversity education and offers practical suggestions for college instructors.

Disclosure statement

We have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Notes

1. Waitoller and King Thorius (2016) explain their use of dis/ability. They write, “We use a slash to denote dis/ability as not an individual trait but rather a product of cultural, economic, and political practices,” (p. 3.67). They emphasize that what is disabling is a product of expectations imposed from the outside.