More and more, the scientific community acknowledges“Neurodiversity”- the biological reality that we are all wired differently.
Rather than being an inconvenience to be eliminated, Neurodiversity is an evolutionary advantage,
something that is essential if we were to flourish as a species.
The idea of Neurodiversity is important,
and of course, that everyone has something to offer no matter their obstacles- if we can only understand ourselves and each other better!
If we choose the right words to frame difference, we can help fight stigma and
potentially make the world more accommodating for the Neurodiversity that exists within and all around us.
The basic tenets of Neurodiversity are that there is no“normal” human brain,
that there are differences, not disorders, and that there are, in many cases, positive aspects to having a variety of brains that function differently.
Others may say that a child who has language delay or
severe learning difficulties is not an example of Neurodiversity but has a disorder,
and I would support their demand for treatments to maximise the child's potential in both language and learning.