Teaching Context

As the Curriculum Development Curator of the CSM Museum & Study Collection, I design and deliver all the object-based learning workshops we run for UAL and external learners. In the last nine months since starting my role, I have taught 25 bespoke workshops for more than 700 students, which has exposed me to a variety of learning styles and needs. While no student has explicitly identified as neurodiverse yet, some course leaders and student feedback have indicated the presence of neurodiverse individuals in my workshops.

My awareness and interest in the relationship between neurodiversity and creativity started early on in my role when artist, Chris Kelly, curated the exhibition: Interwoven for our window display (CSM Museum, 2023). Moreover, I recently learned that 50% of our students identify as neurodiverse (Willcocks, 2024). According to the Annual Report (2022), CSM has the highest percentage of students who have declared a disability, standing at 21% in 2023/2024. Given that CSM also has the highest attainment gap between White and B.A.M.E students, measuring -17% in 2021/2022, I am curious to know how much of that disparity is influenced by disability.  

Earlier this year, I attended the British Museum’s Multi-Sensory Learning in Museums Conference (2024). I was fascinated and inspired by the Learning department’s use of smell and taste in their object-based learning workshops for children with special educational needs and disabilities. At the Museum, we primarily teach using three key methodologies: Jules Prown’s forensic reading, Gillian Rose’s visual analysis, and the emotional or extra-rational reading. Since these frameworks effectively stimulate multiple senses, like sight, sound, and touch, we had not previously considered incorporating taste and smell. This realisation led me to question ways in which I could expand the sensory modalities engaged through objects in my workshops for adults.

Intervention Plan

I aim to create a new object-based learning methodology that is tailored to support the learning needs of neurodiverse women of colour. To avoid asking students to participate in free labour, I will first test out my methodology in a pilot workshop for suitable colleagues. After I have received and incorporated their feedback, I will invite Academic Support to co-run my workshop to expand its reach. While all students will be invited to attend for parity, it will be specifically targeted to neurodiverse women of colour.

My plan is based on Jean McNiff and Jack Whitehead’s Action Research Cycles method (2009). For my intervention, I will complete the first cycle by researching and developing the object-based learning methodology. During my action research, I will complete the second cycle by delivering and evaluating my workshops for colleagues and students. For Fellowship, I will complete the third cycle by further developing and delivering my workshops for external museums.

Positionality

My positionality has strongly influenced my intervention. I am a British-Iranian woman of colour, who was diagnosed with dyspraxia late into high school while studying for my A-Level exams. As a neurodiverse member of staff and former student at CSM, I can relate to some of the experiences of my target group. However, I acknowledge that everybody’s experience is unique, so it is important I consider their individual needs. Moreover, I am wary not to exclude trans women of colour, who are also part of the neurodiverse community.

Supporting Theories and Data

Object-based learning is an inherently inclusive form of experiential pedagogy. As Paolo Freire advocated in his seminal publication, Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1968), object-based learning positions educators as facilitators of knowledge rather than authoritative figures who impose their knowledge on passive learners. Therefore, it empowers them to foster a participatory and dialogical learning environment in which students can engage critically with material culture. This transformative approach also aligns with Michel Foucault’s critique of power structures within educational institutions and the need to challenge dominant narratives and systems of oppression (Foucault, 1977). The positive feedback I received from Kwame Baah and Danielle Radojin for my peer observed workshops in Unit 1, attests to my ability to deliver inclusive workshops.   

My intervention also aligns with Critical Race Theory because it focuses on neurodiverse women of colour, acknowledging their intersecting identities of race, gender, and disability. Moreover, it seeks to empower marginalised voices and challenge dominant educational practices that favour white, neurotypical students. My intervention is a small act of social justice that seeks to create an equitable learning environment, which could help to reduce the attainment gap. Aware that Museums were historically inaccessible to minority ethnic groups (Hatton, K, 2015), Willcocks’ has made anti-racism a key consideration in our work. Due to our rigorous collecting process for the annual Graduate Award (Tohidi, 2023), we have a diverse selection of contemporary objects I could teach with that will spark critical thinking and engaging discourse about the intersectional issues above.

Feedback from Colleagues and Peers

The first colleague I consulted feedback from is Jhinuk Sarkar. This conversation had a huge impact on my intervention because it helped me identify a niche. Inspired by Kimberle Crenshaw’s Intersectionality Theory and intrigued by the “potential coalitions” between race, gender and disability (1991), I decided to aim my intervention at supporting neurodiverse women of colour. Moreover, a subsequent feedback session I arranged with Head of Museum, Judy Willcocks, and Associate Dean of Learning, Silke Lange, enforced the significance of my research because neurodiversity, particularly from an intersectional lens, has not yet been a focal point in the field of object-based learning.

Initially, I intended to co-create and deliver a pilot workshop at the CSM Museum & Study Collection with neurodiverse women of colour studying at CSM. However, Willcocks advised me to change my approach because the museum is not embedded in a particular course, which makes co-creation challenging. Instead, she suggested I use my research to develop my workshop and test it out with colleagues who share characteristics of my target group. Then, once I have revised my methodology using their feedback, I could run it as a student workshop in collaboration with Academic Support. Not only would this approach be more ethical, but it would also broaden the scope of students who could attend my workshop. Feedback from my blog group also highlighted the ethical concerns of creating a focus group of neurodiverse women of colour, affirming the value of Willcocks’ approach.

My feedback session with Willcocks provided me with many practical suggestions to implement in my workshop, based on her decades of teaching experience and knowledge of neurodiversity. For example, she recommended I break down instructions and deliver them in multiple formats, limit my selection of objects, pace my content and frequently check in, factor in regular breaks, and engage a limited number of senses to prevent sensory overload. Willcocks also made me aware of external factors to consider, like the time of day I run the workshop, the temperature of the room, and background noise, since all these elements can distract and overwhelm neurodiverse students.

For my next feedback session, I sought the advice of MA Culture and Enterprise Programme Director, Richie Manu. Manu helpfully introduced me to his relevant research in this field. In the Learning Styles diagram below (Cohune, 1968), we can see that sight was the predominant modality, accounting for 83% of the pie chart. This was followed by hearing (11%), smell (3.5%), touch (1.5%), and taste (1%).

I agree with Manu that this approach is outdated and non-inclusive; we both feel that educators should adopt the Experiential Learning Style (2017) instead. Shown below, it advocates that each modality should be given equal emphasis so that learners have agency and choice. This approach is supported by Carey Jewitt (2008), who said that “multimodality asserts that all modes are partial. Each contributes to the production of knowledge in distinct ways and therefore no one mode stands alone in the process of making meaning.”

Inspired by Manu’s wider-sensory project scope and idea generation diagram below (2017), I will ensure my workshop includes an object that represents each modality and design the layout in a way that learners can choose their exit point.

My conversation with film director, Lotje Sodderland, was also very informative. In her Netflix documentary, My Beautiful Broken Brain (2014), she recalls going from a neurotypical to neurodiverse person overnight due to suffering a stroke aged 34. Her unique lived experience affirmed her belief that communication is key to learning. During our meeting, Sodderland tells me she used Siri to read her script for Channel 4 aloud since she still struggles to read. This insight gave me the idea to offer text to speech for my post workshop object notes so participants can digest notes in their preferred format. Sodderland also emphasised that many neurodiverse people are sensitive to sound and can feel claustrophobic in crowded environments. These are important factors I will consider when I plan my workshop in Unit 3.

Since my consultations with colleagues and peers occurred before my second tutorial with my PgCert tutor, I did not know if consent forms were necessary at this stage and how to write one. This is something I will discuss with my tutor and implement for the Action Research project.

Concluding Thoughts

This intervention has had a significant impact on me as a person and practitioner. On a personal level, it has made me feel more aware, accepting, and proud of my dyspraxia. Growing up, neurodiversity was not a topic of conversation and conditions like mine were seen as a setback. In hindsight, being diagnosed late into my education was a blessing in disguise because it enabled me to create learning processes and systems that now set me apart as a practitioner. It has also helped me be more empathetic and aware of the different learning needs my students may have. I am looking forward to continuing my research over the Summer break and piloting my workshop with colleagues before I pitch it to Academic Support.

References

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