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Diversity-focused unit design: preliminary reflections from responding to students’ learning experiences

conference contribution
posted on 2023-05-24, 21:53 authored by Kate VincentKate Vincent
This presentation focuses on attempts to better support students who identify as neurodiverse. In 2021 in an introductory social work unit, students engaged in groupwork to prepare and complete a presentation as part of an assessment task. I discovered that a student with ADHD, who had shared their diagnosis with their group, including their limitations, had experienced discrimination during the groupwork process. After exploring what had occurred, I reflected and realised that none of the group members had been provided the learning required to work across diversity in this unit. In response, I have included content on neurodiversity into the curriculum that is relevant to workplace contexts, including groupwork. I have also amended the assessment task to place less importance on the presentation itself and more on the collaborative process. Over a 12-month period, I have engaged in a critical reflective process to analyse the design of the units I coordinate, how I respond to the needs of students with Learning Access Plans (LAPs), and both formal and informal student feedback, including from students who identify as neurodiverse. In this presentation I share my process and the preliminary findings of my evaluation to suggest ways in which teaching and learning responses can be positively shaped by student feedback, and also actively promote diversity as a strengthening force behind group work learning activities.

History

Publication title

Proceedings of the 2022 Teaching Matters Conference

Editors

'.'

Pagination

1 piece- abstract

Department/School

School of Social Sciences

Publisher

University of Tasmania

Place of publication

Launceston

Event title

Teaching Matters

Event Venue

Online

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Higher education; Inclusive education; Teacher and instructor development

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