Neurodiversity Course Glossary
ISO Definition
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Terms
Accommodation vs. Modification
Accommodations provide access to learning without changing content standards, while modifications alter the content or expectations of what a student is expected to learn.
Example: Allowing extra time on a test is an accommodation, while reducing the number of questions is a modification.
ADHD And Time Blindness
A difficulty perceiving time intervals and managing time-based tasks common in individuals with ADHD.
Example: A student with time blindness might spend three hours on a 30-minute assignment because they lose track of how much time has passed.
ADHD Characteristics
The primary features associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, including difficulties with attention regulation, hyperactivity, and impulse control.
Example: During visual thinking activities, students with ADHD characteristics may notice unexpected details that others miss because of their divergent attention patterns.
AI As Assistive Technology
The application of artificial intelligence to create tools that support neurodivergent individuals' learning and daily functioning.
Example: An AI writing assistant that offers grammar suggestions helps dyslexic students create written work that accurately represents their knowledge.
AI Bias And Neurodiversity
The potential for artificial intelligence systems to contain biases that disadvantage neurodivergent users due to being trained primarily on neurotypical data.
Example: Voice recognition software might struggle to understand the speech patterns of a student with apraxia, demonstrating AI bias.
AI-Human Cognitive Partnerships
Collaborative relationships between humans and AI systems that leverage complementary cognitive strengths.
Example: A student who struggles with sequential planning uses an AI tool to help organize their visual thinking process into step-by-step instructions.
AR/VR For Cognitive Differences
The use of augmented and virtual reality technologies to create learning environments adapted to different cognitive styles.
Example: A virtual reality program allows students to explore geometric concepts through immersive spatial experiences rather than abstract formulas.
ASD Characteristics
The primary features associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder, including differences in social communication, sensory processing, and patterns of interests or behaviors.
Example: A student with ASD characteristics might excel at detailed visual pattern recognition during art and design projects.
Assistive Technologies
Devices, software, and equipment that increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities.
Example: Text-to-speech software helps students who process information better auditorily than visually to access written content.
Auditory Processing Disorder
A condition affecting how the brain processes auditory information, making it difficult to distinguish between similar sounds or follow verbal instructions.
Example: A student with auditory processing disorder benefits from seeing visual representations of sound waves during music class.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ACC)
Methods and tools that supplement or replace speech for individuals who have difficulty with verbal communication.
Example: Students using AAC devices can actively participate in classroom discussions by selecting symbols or typing messages that are then voiced by their device.
Autism Acceptance
The perspective that autism is a natural form of human diversity to be accepted and accommodated rather than "cured" or hidden.
Example: The teacher practices autism acceptance by valuing a student's detailed drawings as communication, not viewing them as distractions.
Body Doubling
The practice of having another person present during tasks to help with focus and motivation, often helpful for individuals with ADHD.
Example: Two neurodivergent students act as body doubles for each other while working on independent visual mapping projects.
Cognitive Accessibility
The design of information, environments, and experiences to be perceived and understood by people with diverse cognitive abilities.
Example: Course materials include both text and visual representations to ensure cognitive accessibility for students with different processing strengths.
Cognitive Diversity
The presence of many different ways of thinking, learning, and processing information within a group.
Example: The teacher recognizes cognitive diversity by providing multiple ways for students to demonstrate their understanding of a concept.
Cognitive Load Theory
A framework explaining how working memory limitations affect learning, especially relevant for neurodivergent individuals who may experience different cognitive loads for various tasks.
Example: Breaking down visual design tasks into smaller steps helps reduce cognitive load for students who struggle with executive functioning.
Cognitive Profile
Comorbidity In Neurodevelopmental Conditions
The co-occurrence of two or more neurodevelopmental conditions in the same individual.
Example: A student demonstrates comorbidity by having both dyslexia and ADHD, requiring integrated support strategies for both visual and attention-based learning.
Compensation Strategies
Techniques that neurodivergent individuals develop to work around cognitive challenges by leveraging strengths.
Example: A student with dyscalculia uses visual grouping strategies to compensate for difficulties with numerical calculations.
Concept Mapping
A visual technique for organizing and representing knowledge that shows relationships between ideas.
Example: Students create concept maps to visualize the connections between different neurodiversity terms and their real-world applications.
Deep Work
A state of focused concentration that allows complex cognitive tasks to be completed with higher quality results, which may be challenging for some neurodivergent individuals.
Example: The classroom provides designated quiet spaces for students who need distraction-free environments to engage in deep work on visual projects.
Developmental Coordination Disorder
A condition characterized by difficulties with fine or gross motor coordination that affects academic achievement and daily activities.
Example: A student with developmental coordination disorder uses digital drawing tools with stabilization features instead of traditional art materials.
Dyscalculia
A specific learning difference affecting the ability to understand and work with numbers and mathematical concepts.
Example: A student with dyscalculia uses visual manipulatives and spatial arrangements to grasp mathematical relationships that are difficult to understand through numerical symbols alone.
Dysgraphia
A specific learning difference affecting handwriting, typing, and written expression.
Example: A student with dysgraphia uses speech-to-text technology to capture their detailed visual descriptions without the barrier of handwriting.
Dyslexia
A specific learning difference that affects reading and language processing, often characterized by difficulties with phonological awareness and decoding.
Example: A student with dyslexia excels at understanding complex visual information in diagrams despite struggling with written text explanations.
Dyspraxia
A condition affecting physical coordination and motor planning, which can impact handwriting, speech, and other movements.
Example: During visual arts classes, a student with dyspraxia benefits from adapted tools with larger grips and stabilizing features.
Executive Function Skills
The cognitive processes responsible for planning, focusing attention, remembering instructions, and managing multiple tasks.
Example: Creating visual schedules helps students develop executive function skills by making the sequence of tasks visible and concrete.
Expanded Cognitive Profiles
A framework that recognizes and values the full range of cognitive abilities and styles, beyond traditional measures.
Example: The teacher uses expanded cognitive profiles to identify and nurture unique visual-spatial talents that might be overlooked in standard assessments.
GiftED vs. Twice Exceptional (2e)
The distinction between students who are intellectually gifted and those who are both gifted and have a learning difference or disability.
Example: A twice exceptional student demonstrates advanced visual thinking abilities while struggling with written expression of their innovative ideas.
Hyperfocus
An intense state of concentration and engagement on a particular task or interest, common in individuals with ADHD or autism.
Example: A student with hyperfocus ability spends hours perfecting a visual design, noticing details that others might overlook.
Inclusive Design
The creation of products, environments, and systems that can be used by people with the widest possible range of abilities.
Example: The digital learning platform features inclusive design with customizable visual interfaces to accommodate different sensory sensitivities and cognitive preferences.
Learning Differences vs. Learning Disabilities
A distinction emphasizing that variations in how people learn represent diversity rather than deficiency.
Example: The course views dyslexia as a learning difference that often correlates with enhanced visual-spatial abilities rather than solely as a disability.
Masking (Social Camouflaging)
The process of hiding or suppressing neurodivergent traits to appear more neurotypical in social situations.
Example: A student who excels at visual thinking might mask this preference in group work by forcing themselves to use only written notes like their peers.
Multisensory Learning
Educational approaches that engage multiple senses simultaneously to enhance understanding and retention.
Example: The science lesson combines visual diagrams, tactile models, and verbal explanations to support multisensory learning for all cognitive styles.
Natural Variation In Human Cognition
The perspective that differences in thinking, learning, and processing information are normal aspects of human diversity.
Example: The course teaches that visual thinking represents a natural variation in human cognition, not a deficiency or abnormality.
Neurodivergent Definition
Describing individuals whose brain functions differ from the dominant societal standards of "normal" in terms of sociability, learning, attention, or other mental functions.
Example: Many neurodivergent students discover that visual thinking techniques help them express complex ideas more effectively than written text.
Neurodiversity Definition
The concept that neurological differences like autism and ADHD are natural variations in the human genome rather than disorders or deficits.
Example: Understanding neurodiversity helps educators recognize visual thinking as a valuable cognitive approach rather than just an alternative accommodation.
Neuroplasticity
The brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life.
Example: Targeted visual thinking exercises leverage neuroplasticity to strengthen cognitive pathways that support spatial reasoning and pattern recognition.
Neurotypical Definition
Describing individuals whose neurological development and state conform to what most consider typical or normal.
Example: Neurotypical students can benefit from learning visual thinking strategies commonly used by their neurodivergent peers.
Normal Distribution Of Cognitive Traits
The statistical pattern showing that most cognitive abilities occur along a bell curve in the population, with exceptional abilities in any direction being less common.
Example: Visual processing skills follow a normal distribution, with some individuals at either end of the spectrum showing remarkably enhanced or challenged visual thinking abilities.
Perseveration
The repetition of a particular response or behavior beyond when it is relevant, often seen in autism.
Example: A student demonstrating perseveration might continue adding details to a visual project long after the assignment requirements have been met.
Sensory Processing Differences
Variations in how individuals perceive, respond to, and integrate sensory information from the environment and their bodies.
Example: Visual thinking activities are designed with attention to sensory processing differences, offering options for brightness, contrast, and visual complexity.
Social Communication Differences
Variations in how individuals understand, respond to, and engage in social interactions and communication.
Example: A student with social communication differences might explain complex concepts more clearly through visual diagrams than through verbal conversation.
Spiky Cognitive Profile
A pattern of cognitive abilities characterized by significant strengths in some areas alongside challenges in others.
Example: A student with a spiky cognitive profile might struggle with reading text but excel at understanding and creating complex visual systems and patterns.
Strengths-Based Approach
An educational perspective focusing on identifying and developing students' abilities rather than remediating deficits.
Example: The strengths-based approach recognizes and nurtures advanced visual thinking abilities while providing support for related challenges.
Theory of Mind
The ability to understand that others have beliefs, desires, intentions, and perspectives that are different from one's own.
Example: Visual social stories help students develop theory of mind by illustrating different perspectives in social situations.
Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
An educational framework based on cognitive neuroscience that guides the development of flexible learning environments that accommodate individual learning differences.
Example: The course applies UDL principles by providing concepts through multiple formats, including visual diagrams, text, and interactive models.
Visual Thinking
A cognitive style that processes information primarily through images, spatial relationships, and visual patterns rather than words or verbal sequences.
Example: Students learn to organize their thoughts using mind maps, demonstrating how visual thinking can reveal connections that might not be apparent in linear text.
Working Memory Challenges
Difficulties with the cognitive system responsible for temporarily holding and manipulating information.
Example: Visual reference guides help students with working memory challenges by making information visible rather than requiring them to hold it in mind.