Open Society

How We Know Neurodivergence

Alright – so today we’re talking about the Reading Wars, the historical debate about how to teach literacy. Specifically we’re talking about the Science of Reading movement, a faction of the so-called Reading Wars. The Science of Reading movement is connected to other similarly named movements aimed at “going back to basics” in teaching, such as the Science of Math movement, or the more general “Science of Learning” movement. Especially in the last few years, these movements have taken storm as test scores have dropped and a narrative has been formed that schools are, once again, failing our children. First, we want to give an overview on how the Science of Reading, steeped in this “Reading Wars” debate, is shaping our classrooms, student literacy, and teacher professional development. We’re going to talk about how this movement is not only changing reading classrooms, but the general ideas of school itself. And two: to make the claim that the Science of Reading, like many of the factions that have formed around the Reading Wars or Math Wars more broadly, does more harm than good. And that our obsession with these labels and factions on teaching reading is dangerous and harmful to young people and teachers alike, for many many reasons. But before we talk specifically about the Science of Reading movement, let’s take a look at the ongoing debate surrounding literacy that’s been fought for nearly 100 years... What're we getting ourselves into... 00:00:00-00:02:25 Dewey v. Thorndike 00:02:25-00:06:05 The Reading Wars 00:06:05-00:24:10 "The Science of Reading" 00:24:11-00:32:36 Cultural Literacy 00:32:37-00:41:10 The Knowledge Gap 00:41:11-00:50:26 The Dismal Deans 00:50:27-01:14:12 Beyond The Reading Wars 01:14:13-01:29:38 Huge thanks to Megan Figueroa for speaking with us, you can learn more at her website & podcast https://meganfigueroa.com/ and https://vocalfriespod.com/ All of our sources are referenced throughout the video, and you can find other specific study links here: https://www.humanrestorationproject.org/writing/who-is-being-sold-a-story-unsettling-the-science-of-reading Beyond Pavlov's Perfect Student: https://www.humanrestorationproject.org/writing/going-beyond-pavlovs-perfect-student ----------------------------------------------- Learn more about our free resources, podcast, writings, and more at https://www.humanrestorationproject.org/ Join our Discord (link on website!) Twitter: https://twitter.com/HumResPro Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/humanrestorationproject/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/humrespro/ Want a HUMANIZE EDUCATION shirt? https://www.rayguncustom.com/collections/human-restoration-project Human Restoration Project is a 501(c)3 nonprofit centered on enabling human-centered schools through progressive pedagogy. All content is released under a Creative Commons attribution, non-commercial, share-alike international license unless otherwise noted. Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Subscribe to our podcast on your favorite player at "Human Restoration Project."

Negative school experiences generate twice the emotional burden in autistic and ADHD adolescents compared to their neurotypical classmates, and this is significantly correlated with depression and anxiety, according to a new study involving a UCL researcher.

Plain language is an important part of making things accessible for disabled people. We are very worried that people are using artificial intelligence to translate text into plain language without realizing that it cannot do that work correctly. We tested multiple artificial intelligence models, and all of them made big…

Published in Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies (Vol. 40, No. 2, 2018)

Each equity "lever" includes a guiding question and detailed description.

Empathy deficits are considered a core attribute of autism and are scored in standardized autism diagnostic instruments. However, empirical evidence c…

This paper describes the eight phases of an innovative procedure for collective and reflexive research about neurodiversity. Structured by Q methodology, this p...

Contrary to common perception, technology use supports social connection.

And Why Journalism, Education, and Media for Children need to be held responsible for their ableism.

Online communities of adults with autism are creating a new culture focused on empowerment. Here is some of the new language growing in these communities.

Written in June 2023 A while ago I saved an image created by @h.e.l.e.n.m.a.r.i.e about glimmers: The image text reads:A little guide to glimmers glimmers are the opposite of triggers. they are tiny moments of awe. they spark joy & evoke inner calm. they have a positive effect on our mental health. they are micro-moments

Despite making democracy our national identity, most Americans don’t meaningfully participate in civic, economic, or social democratic practices, and it’s ruining our lives.

PDF | Collective mental health patient organising in England is usually dated to the nineteenth century and seen as arising in response to the mass... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

The Distributed AI Research Institute is a space for independent, community-rooted AI research, free from Big Tech’s pervasive influence.

A couple centuries ago, a group of English clothworkers set out to destroy the machines that had been taking their jobs. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.

I published this document internally at Automattic to be used by any colleague curious about how to interact with me. I am sharing it here as I want to be able to reference it publicly, and access …

This accessible book introduces a new theory of critical disciplinary literacy (CDL) that merges criticality and disciplinary literacy approaches in a cohesive and inclusive framework. There are unique hurdles in integrating critical and culturally sustaining approaches to literacy into specialized content area classrooms, but this book provides clear, research-grounded strategies and methods that will appeal to teachers and help them foster equitable literacy learning opportunities for all stud

In an effort to boost engagement while also nurturing 21st century skills such as collaboration and critical thinking, a growing number of U.S. public schools h...

In this study, we examined demographic patterns of participation and persistence in high school elective music ensembles. We extend prior research that has only...

Facilitated Communication is bunk, with many facilitators having used it to put words in the mouths of children. This massively popular podcast is just the latest instance of abuse involving FC.

Purpose This paper critiques meritocracy's foundational assumptions, arguing that its focus on ranking individuals according to flawed metrics fosters unhe...

Why are incarcerated people dying from lack of food or water, even as private companies are paid millions for their care? Sarah Stillman reports.

Autistic people report greater comfort socialising and easier communication with each other. Despite autism being stereotypically associated with lack of social...

A sense of being connected to other autistic people has been reported anecdotally. Friendships and connectedness may be important to autistic people and beneficial for their wellbeing. Our research aimed to understand the autistic community by interviewing 20 autistic people about their experiences …

The UK education system is failing to meet needs, leading to an attendance and school anxiety crisis. However, the system faults those disproportionately and mo...