The need for FidgetHE

The adult education sector, particularly Higher Education, is currently facing a myriad of challenges, amongst them, a more competitive landscape for student recruitment (and retention). For many students that I speak to, critical to this is feeling a sense of belonging. This, in turn, has implications for both the satisfaction rates of students and potential repetitional damage (both individually and institutionally). The classroom should be regarded as the ‘front line’ of this effort given here is where learners interact with the institution most acutely.  However, a key concern for most teachers relates to their perceived lack of preparedness for enacting an inclusive pedagogy in classrooms with diverse groups of learners (Black-Hawkins & Amrhein, 2014; Symeonidou, 2017). This is concerning given “trust in HE for mature students is intrinsically fragile and always revocable” (Boronski & Hassan, 2015). 

FidgetHE resources are designed with this in mind and aims to empower both teachers and adult learners alike to embrace inclusion. Whilst if, like me, you are a Lecturer/teacher/tutor/coach that is not an expert in inclusive practice with in-depth knowledge of the plethora of Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities and neurodiversities that exist, FidgetHE supports us to approach our practice with “Good Faith and Effort” (Cole, 2005). Recognising that we are all Lecturers/teachers/tutors/coaches of learners with learning needs and that attempting to meet those needs (whether we or even they know what those are yet) is better than doing nothing at all.