Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning

University of Mississippi

neurodivergent

Podcasts & puzzles offers parallel play for campus community

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by Liz Norell, associate director of instructional support

While CETL loves offering our teaching (and teaching-adjacent) community opportunities to collaborate around excellent teaching and meaningful learning, not every gathering has to involve people talking to others to accomplish that goal. That’s why we’re piloting a new program this fall: Podcasts & Puzzles.

The idea is simple, and it’s borrowed from the phenomenon known in some circles as parallel play: We gather in a room together, listen to a (teaching) podcast, and engage in a quiet activity — like putting together a puzzle.

The New York Times wrote about parallel play — “Let’s Ignore Each Other in the Same Room” — in 2021. The benefits of engaging in individual activities while in the presence of others “can help relieve stress and diminish the sense of isolation,” according to Dr. Zheala Qayyum, quoted in the Times article. This kind of gathering can be especially comforting for more introverted adults.

CETL will host the Podcasts & Puzzles gatherings every two weeks in Hill Hall. The group will choose an episode of a teaching-related podcast (like Teaching in Higher Ed, Tea for Teaching, or Intentional Teaching [full disclosure: hosted by CETL’s own Derek Bruff]). Participants can work on a puzzle (alone or with others) or engage in other activities, like knitting/crochet, art projects/coloring, or doodling.

Parallel play is especially inviting for those who are neurodivergent (such as people with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, or other neurodivergent conditions). Because the emphasis in parallel play is explicitly not on interpersonal interactions, neurodivergent people typically need to expend less effort to engage.

We invite you to come and learn a little about teaching, take your gaze away from digital devices, and engage your brain differently than normal — all in service to excellent teaching and meaningful learning.

Offered on selected Wednesdays from 2:00-3:00 pm in Hill Hall 214:
August 30
September 13 & 27
October 11 & 17
November 1, 8, & 29

Register here to participate

What Instructors Need to Know When Working with Neurodivergent Students, September 8th

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by Liz Norell, associate director of instructional supportAn abstract illustration of a brain with multicolored overlapping circles

The CETL workshop “What Instructors Need to Know When Working with Neurodivergent Students” will be held on September 8th from noon to 1:00 pm in Johnson Commons East Ballroom. Register for the event here.

Chances are good that you’ve seen or heard someone use the words “neurodivergent” or “neurodiverse” recently. That said, it’s not always clear exactly what these words mean or how they might impact the work we do with students.

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently reported that “up to 2 percent of undergraduates are autistic, and 19 percent have ADHD. Many more have anxiety disorder and depression.” These are reported cases, but we know many more students have them. There are systemic barriers around diagnosis and reporting of mental health conditions–cost and time two large ones. Students (and your colleagues) face stigma around disability and a lack of awareness, too. Chances are good more than a quarter of your students has a disability–whether you (or they) know it.

Defining terms

Let’s start with some terms:

  • Neurodivergent: a person with a brain that processes information in a way different from most individuals.
  • Neurotypical: a person with a brain that processes information in a way typical of most individuals.
  • Neurodiverse: a group of people with diverse ways of processing information, including those considered typical.

Any classroom will be a neurodiverse space because it will always include students and instructors with diverse ways of knowing, processing information, and learning.

Neurodivergent people have some condition that impacts how their brains work. For example, they may have a learning disability, attention deficit or anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette’s syndrome, or bipolar disorder, to name a few.

A wide range of conditions are clustered under the umbrella of “neurodivergent.” This makes knowing how to anticipate the needs of neurodivergent students feel daunting, maybe even overwhelming.

In this workshop, we will share actionable advice with instructors on how to create learning spaces that facilitate success for neurodivergent students.

The CETL workshop “What Instructors Need to Know When Working with Neurodivergent Students” will be held on September 8th from noon to 1:00 pm in Johnson Commons East Ballroom. Register for the event here.

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