Writing Neurodiversity: Processing Lived Experience through Poetry
| Duration | 10 weekly meetings | |
|---|---|---|
| Tutor | Dr Rachel Carney | |
| Course code | CRW26A5682A | |
| Fee | £220 | |
| Concessionary fee | £176 (find out about eligibility and funding options) | |
| Location | Online course |
In a safe and supportive space, this neurodivergent-led course explores, articulates, processes and reflects on the neurodivergent experience, using poetry as a therapeutic tool.
We will respond to negative experiences and stereotypes, celebrate our neurodivergent strengths, and use language and poetic techniques to express what it means to be neurodivergent in a neurotypical world.
The course is open to anyone who has (or who thinks they might have) lived experience of neurodivergence (diagnosed, self-diagnosed, or undiagnosed).
This version of the course is aimed at writers with previous experience of writing poetry.
Learning and teaching
Through two-hour online meetings once a week (20 contact hours). These will include mini-lectures, peer discussions, and a variety of written and reflective exercises.
Learners will be encouraged to share their writing experience with peers, although direct reading out of work is not a requirement.
The emphasis of this course is on engagement and participation in exercises. There will be options to engage both through verbal discussion and through written text, depending on preference.
Opportunities for sharing work and receiving positive and constructive feedback will be available for those who do wish to share their writing with the group.
Coursework and assessment
The basis of assessment will be a creative portfolio accompanied by a personal reflection
- A portfolio of creative texts (between 4-6 pages of poetry or 1500 words of prose)
- 300-word personal reflection on the writing process
Reading suggestions
We will examine several texts written by neurodivergent writers, including Kate Fox, Jane Burn, Esther Ottaway, and Oz Hardwick, with a focus on the following topics:
- Reflecting on childhood memories
- The neurodivergent journey – diagnosis / self-diagnosis
- Understanding our own unique neurodivergence
- Communicating lived experience to others
- Celebrating neurodivergent strengths
- Responding to stigma and stereotypes
Throughout the module, we will experiment with various writing tools (including humour, word-play, and poetic form) as a means of expressing and articulating neurodivergent lived experience, and we will use ekphrasis (responding to visual prompts) as a catalyst for reflection.
We will also explore the terminology around neurodiversity and consider how this terminology relates to the social model of disability.
Library and computing facilities
As a student on this course you are entitled to join and use the University’s library and computing facilities. Find out more about using these facilities.
Accessibility
Our aim is access for all. We aim to provide a confidential advice and support service for any student with a long term medical condition, disability or specific learning difficulty. We are able to offer one-to-one advice about disability, pre-enrolment visits, liaison with tutors and co-ordinating lecturers, material in alternative formats, arrangements for accessible courses, assessment arrangements, loan equipment and dyslexia screening.
