Building educator capacity for inclusive higher education
Monash University Malaysia brought together university educators from across Malaysia to explore how teaching and assessment practices can better support neurodivergent students, including those with autism, ADHD, dyslexia and dyspraxia.
The program, Empowering (Dis)Abilities: Capacity Building for Neuro-Inclusive Pedagogy in Higher Education, was organised by the School of Business with support from the Monash-Warwick Alliance Education Activation Grant. The program featured two-day workshop sessions for educators from public and private higher education institutions.
Some students experience challenges in higher education that may not be immediately visible to others. These include students with hidden or non-disclosed disabilities whose learning needs may not always be recognised in the classroom. The program aimed to help educators better understand these experiences and explore practical ways to make teaching, learning and assessment more inclusive.
Participants explored Warwick’s Neurodiversity Toolkit, which was adapted for the Asian higher education context, alongside evidence-informed approaches to inclusive teaching. They also discussed how to create supportive learning environments, design more accessible assessments and respond to the different ways students think and learn.
Participants explored neuro-inclusive teaching through interactive activities and discussions on Day 1, combining practical training, research and experiential learning.
A key part of the program was an experiential learning workshop at Dialogue in the Dark Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. Guided by blind and visually impaired facilitators, participants took part in activities in complete darkness. The experience encouraged them to reflect on their assumptions about disability, as well as the roles of communication, trust and inclusion in everyday life.
Participants took part in an immersive learning experience at Dialogue in the Dark Malaysia, exploring disability, communication and empathy as part of the two-day neuro-inclusive pedagogy workshop.
The program also formed part of an action research initiative under the Monash-Warwick Alliance Education Activation Grant. Through participants’ reflections and learning experiences, the research aims to better understand how educators develop their knowledge and teaching practices around neuro-inclusion in the Malaysian higher education context. The findings will help refine the adapted Neurodiversity Toolkit and inform future research and capacity-building initiatives.
The program brought together a multidisciplinary team from Monash University Australia and the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom. Participants represented institutions including Sunway University, Universiti Malaya, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, the University of Nottingham Malaysia and other higher education institutions.
Group photo of participants from Session B of the neuro-inclusive pedagogy workshop, one of three sessions held at Monash University Malaysia.
By encouraging educators to reflect on their teaching practices and learn from different perspectives, the initiative supports efforts to create learning environments where students with diverse needs have greater opportunities to participate and succeed. It also contributes to Sustainable Development Goal 4, which promotes inclusive and equitable quality education for all.