For Neurodiversity Week, discover how a new tool is helping neurodivergent students communicate their needs without having to repeatedly explain themselves to every new tutor. As neurodivergent learners, we often know exactly what we need to succeed, but distance learning can make it challenging to communicate this effectively.
"Understanding Me as a Learner" (UMaaL) is a student-authored resource designed with neurodivergent students in mind, recognising that:
- Sensory sensitivities affect how and when we can study
- Executive function challenges may require specific support strategies
- Communication preferences vary (some of us prefer written contact, others need phone calls)
- Unexpected changes to schedules can be particularly difficult
- We need control over what personal information we share and when
- Explaining our needs repeatedly to different tutors across modules is exhausting
This session will:
- Introduce UMaaL and explain how it centres student agency, reflection and self-advocacy
- Share real examples of how neurodivergent students have used it to communicate their access needs, sensory preferences and study patterns
- Help you think about your own learning preferences without requiring disclosure of diagnoses
- Demonstrate how UMaaL reduces the emotional labour of repeatedly explaining yourself
- Show how the tool can help tutors understand neurodivergent learning styles from day one
- Explore how UMaaL supports those still awaiting assessment, recently diagnosed, or self-identifying as neurodivergent
Join here
About Mel Green
Mel Green is a mother of two boys and a parent carer to her eldest son, who is autistic, non-speaking, and has sensory processing disorder. Her advocacy of her eldest son and use of child-centred, strengths-based approaches led to creation of Understanding Me as a Learner, which is now used across the university to support students’ self-reflection and build positive student–tutor relationships.
Mel is a Lecturer in Education Studies and a researcher whose work examines the sociology of education, identity-work, and the experiences of marginalised communities. Before entering higher education in 2017, Mel taught in state primary schools, pupil referral units, and psychiatric settings. Her published research includes studies on anti-racist assessment and Black motherhood. Mel also serves as Co-Chair of the Care and Caring Staff Network, drawing on her lived experience to advocate for staff carers.