The first session presenters on the stage at the recent UDL-IRN Summit told of when they first met. At a summit of years past, the two sat next to each other as strangers. “Do I belong here?” The question was on both Hillary Goldthwait-Fowles and Andratesha Fritzgerald’s minds.
It was answered when they found community in one another. That first conversation led to a years-long friendship between the two activists. It’s a friendship where they’ve shared a lot of hard, important conversations.
“Do I belong here?” It’s a question UDL practitioners who work in education aim to answer with a “yes,” for each and every learner they encounter.
Over two days, the UDL-IRN offered many helpful sessions to participants at many different stages in their UDL journey. Below, we highlight key summit takeaways.
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In a recent webinar, Texthelp’s CEO, Martin McKay, and Inclusion Specialist, Rebecca, were joined by guests from Ernst & Young (EY). Together, they explored the power of disability inclusion. Both Texthelp and EY were founded out of a true passion to make the world a more equitable place. During the session all speakers shared advice to help other organisations make an impact too.
At the recent SXSW EDU event, Texthelp’s Founder & CEO, Martin McKay, joined a panel exploring, ‘The Power of Different Thinkers’. During this session they explored the strengths of neurodiversity, highlighting why workplaces should, and how they can, become more neuro-inclusive. Below, we highlight key insights.
As someone with ADHD and Dyslexia, Cory shares what he wishes educators and employers knew about neurodiversity. Cory currently works in the Human Services field. Prior to this, Cory was a teacher in Canada teaching children in Pre-K to Grade 3. By sharing his experiences and insights, Cory hopes that he can help more people to understand what it’s like to be neurodiverse living in a ‘neurotypical’ world.
We live in a diverse world. Naturally, the way we each communicate is also diverse. All of us have our own way of thinking, understanding and expressing ourselves. For some, how they communicate isn’t through personal choice, but a result of personal needs. Inclusive communication recognises this. For every organisation, it should be part of their DNA. At Texthelp, it’s at the heart of our whole organisation. In fact, it’s our core purpose. I’ll explain why.