Research Spotlight: ‘FutureDiversity’: a purposeful programme for preparing neurodivergent learners for their future pathways, co-created with Key Stage 4 students.
- Lucie Wheeler
- Mar 18
- 3 min read
Dr Poppy Gibson is a Lecturer and researcher in Education whose key interests involve children and young people's psychological development and mental health. Poppy's research centres around neurodiversity and wellbeing.
Did You Know?
➤ Neurodivergent teens often face heightened risks of mental health challenges like anxiety and depression: rates of anxiety and depression were up to ten-fold the prevalence of adolescents not diagnosed with autism or ADHD (Accardo, Pontes and Pontes, 2022).
➤ Neurodivergent teens may struggle with social cues and forming peer relationships.
➤ Neurodivergent individuals often possess unique strengths, such as intense focus on specific interests, strong pattern recognition, and creative problem-solving.
What was the research was looking at?
Neurodiversity refers to accepting that everyone’s brain functions in different ways; whilst most brains process information in a ‘neurotypical’ way, some brains are ‘neurodivergent’.
Young people who are neurodivergent often face unique challenges when transitioning from school to college, and then into the workforce or adult life. School often provides a structured environment with clear schedules and expectations, which can be helpful for neurodivergent students.
Transitioning to Further Education, Higher Education, or the workforce, where there may be less structure and more ambiguous expectations, can be overwhelming. There may be barriers that mean agency is eroded in the choice-making for these learners.
This project, partnered with a London college, involves the trialling and testing of new approaches in building key skills with young people aged 15 and 16 years old, ready for further study or employment.
How did you conduct your research?
This research project involves gathering voices of students and staff to inform a programme that can be delivered by educators in Key Stage 4 to support young people who are neurodivergent in planning their pathways to employment, and improvement of employability skills.
Although the exact structure of the programme is yet unknown, we propose it may have three key stages for students to work through:
➤Reflect and empower- reflect on strengths and self-value.
➤Target- explore areas where they need support or development.
➤Grow- the stage of purposeful growth in skills ready for their next steps.
➤ Data set 1: creative projects with young people
➤ Data set 2: focus groups and interviews with young people to gather lived experiences
➤ Data set 3: interviews with practitioners and staff at the college
This will then lead to co-creation of an induction programme, which could be used by schools and colleges to help young people reflect upon their strengths and dreams for their futures, and consider possible future pathways.
Any recommendations?
➤ As educators, and other professionals working with young people, we need to make space for conversations to think about the future and their dreams and goals.
➤ Helping young people recognise their strengths can be valuable in helping build their confidence and self-esteem ready for their post-16 phase.
Your final word…
Working on projects like this help us advancing inclusive practices, support young people in developing life skills, and enhance pathways to employment for neurodivergent learners. We can only do this if we hear voices of the young people themselves and listen to their lived experiences.
Poppy worked with a fantastic team on this project: Toby Doncaster, Dr Jon Rainford, Charon Gates and Marie Greenhalgh.
So many adults aren’t diagnosed as ‘neurodivergent’ until adulthood!
How may recognising and diagnosing neurodivergent conditions in childhood be of benefit?
Tell us in the comments
Poppy has published around this topic at:
➤Journal: Full article: Promoting potential through purposeful inclusive assessment for distance learners
➤Compass journal: Designing Institutional Systems that Support Neurodivergent Educators | Compass: Journal of Learning and Teaching in Higher Education
➤ blog post we did for nexus education: Understanding and Supporting Neurodivergence around the World - Nexus Education
Poppy's Recommended reading:
You can learn more about the funding for this project here (this project is listed as number 3 on the list):
References
Accardo AL, Pontes NMH, Pontes MCF. (2022) Heightened Anxiety and Depression Among Autistic Adolescents with ADHD: Findings From the National Survey of Children's Health 2016-2019. J Autism Dev Disord. 2024 Feb;54(2):563-576. doi: 10.1007/s10803-022-05803-9. Epub 2022 Nov 3. PMID: 36327018; PMCID: PMC9630808.
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