Why One Size Doesn’t Fit All in Learning
Remember this? I loved playing with this toy. I learned about the shapes, how they looked, how many sides they had and what they were called. For anyone unfamiliar with the concept, the yellow pieces have their own specially shaped hole in the ball. They need to be slotted through until all forms are safely inside. Once inside, the ball opened up and the pieces shaken out.
It was great fun, simple fun at a time in life when things were less complicated. Of course, it wasn’t just about enjoying the game, it was educational too. There are formed pieces, with specific names and there are places in which they fit. They only fit into the space made for them. If they were to lose any of their form, they would no longer fit. There would be no place for them.
So what of the infinite variations on the forms with a name? the cylinder or circle that isn’t quite round or the irregular shape that has no title? Where in the world is their place? How would they fit into the red and blue ball?
We now live in far more accepting societies. Diversity is celebrated in all its wonderful forms. Opportunities are opening up for a wider demographic all the time. Yet, the schooling system still expects children to fit into the same ill fitting ‘holes’. It doesn’t make sense to ‘recognise’ that we are all different. Each of us is literally unique and will find our place. but not necessarily before we reach adulthood. Yet, the framework makes students think they can excel in all subjects. That this is achievable if they put in the effort. This is comparable to saying, ‘we know you are an irregular octagon.’ We only have round shaped spaces. You need to fit through that. If you try really hard, you can change, because we need the same result from you as we do from the circles’
Does that not sound ridiculous?
Tomorrow is the start of the new academic year. Teachers all over the country will be undergoing their first training of the term. Planning of new and exciting content will commence along with techniques to make learning accessible to all students. If only the education system would align with the progress in recognising neurodiverse conditions. These conditions prove that one size absolutely does not fit all.
What a happy, fulfilled and confident set of achievers we would have then? Always.
Samantha Humphreys 