On 11 March, Team Neurodiversity (ND) shined again at the Learning Together Conference hosted by UNIS Hanoi. This is a huge milestone for Team ND after the success in presenting to the Middle School students as seen in a previous Tin Tuc’s Article. 

The four members of the team; Hoang Minh, Iris, Ms Morgan, and Ms Thawley gave their ‘All Brains are Beautiful’ presentation to an extremely engaged audience, with the help of a fantastic and charismatic interpreter, Ms Thao. This was the only presentation that included students’ voices and input in the conference. The attendees at the conference were local teachers that chose to attend the presentation to learn more about neurodiversity. 

This is a proud moment for Team ND, a journey starting when they presented to the UNIS Hanoi community and now going even further.

Minh shares “My experience during the Learning Together Conference was incredible. I was proud to be a presenter at this wonderful event. This was a new experience for me, presenting with and to amazing people. Even though it was a huge challenge, we nailed it!”

Iris was also extremely proud, and very pleased with how it went. Going as far to say it was their best presentation yet!  “We even had a few tears at the end from an audience member who was very passionate about neurodiversity advocacy. You never realize it at the moment; but us telling our stories and experiences, using them to bring awareness, actually mean a lot to people – and it makes a difference.”

Ms Morgan shared how being part of this team has empowered her to continue to advocate for inclusion. She said, “This team of teachers and students is taking a huge step into becoming a more inclusive school by educating the community with our personal narratives of Neurodiversity.” 

Ms Thawley reported “I love working with this team of people, they are open, inclusive, and fun. Our message is important, all students belong and have a right to a quality education.” 

Ms Thao, shared “I had an exceptional experience joining the ND Team and interpreting in the ND Team’s session. It was my honour to support a proud, brave, and enthusiastic team, to convey their messages, and to translate the participants’ questions and ideas. It was a chance for me to reflect on and deepen my knowledge about neurodiversity. It was also a chance for me to learn more about neurodiversity in a larger community, the great things communities are doing for neurodiverse students, and the concerns of teachers from other schools and educational institutions. I hope the message that the ND team sent out will be passed on and help raise awareness of neurodiversity in our community.”

During the Q&A session, we received many questions from local Vietnamese teachers. Team ND was able to share strategies and tools that teachers can use in their own classrooms to support neurodiverse students. The ending message of the presentation was to remind all teachers that every student has the right to a quality education and that inclusion is beneficial for all students.