La neurodiversité, c'est quoi: Empowering All Learners in the French Classroom

Description: This session will introduce the concept of neurodiversity and encourage attendees to embrace the viewpoint that each learner has a unique set of strengths and needs in the French language classroom. Too often students are told by parents, counselors, and even teachers that they will not be successful language learners due to their specific learning differences, which makes acquiring French seem inaccessible and unachievable. Instead, French educators need to empower their students to embrace who they are as learners so they can reach their own language goals. By the end of this seminar, participants will be able to 1) define the concept of neurodiversity and recognize how it impacts the French classroom, 2) reflect upon their own classroom practices and curricula in order to identify strengths and areas of improvement for inclusivity, and 3) implement new strategies and systems to better serve a wide variety of learners.

Bio: Wesley Wood is a disability specialist at Georgetown University and a former K-12 Latin and French teacher. A licensed Maryland educator, Wesley has Master's degrees in Classics from the University of Colorado Boulder and in Foreign Language Education from Miami University - Ohio. In 2022, he was named GWATFL Teacher of the Year and a NECTFL finalist. Wesley was also selected as a NECTFL Mead Innovation Fellow for his work advocating for neurodivergent learners and educators in language programs. Now at Georgetown University, Wesley helps undergraduate, graduate, and medical students access disability accommodations while supporting faculty and staff members in fostering more inclusive and accessible learning environments.