TPP 494: Lindsay Lyons on Navigating Hard School Conversations Around Inclusion, Equity, and Neurodivergence
episode
Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
43 min
1 speaker
8 chapters
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What motivates Lindsay Lyons to focus on inclusion, equity, and neurodivergence in schools?
I'm Debbie Reber, and this is Full Tilt Parenting. Today, I'm sharing a really interesting conversation I recently had with Lindsay Lyons, an educational justice coach, former New York City public school teacher and parent who helps families and educators create space for real, meaningful conversations with kids. Lindsay holds a PhD in leadership and change and is the founder of the blog and podcast Time for Teachership, where she explores what it means to teach and lead with courage and integrity. In this conversation, Lindsay and I are going to dig into the challenges educators and families face when navigating hard conversations in schools, especially around things like inclusion, equity, and neurodivergence.
We'll talk about the importance of student voice, creating safe spaces for dialogue, and addressing the fears and barriers that can get in the way of real change. At the heart of all of this is dignity. How honoring kids' humanity and lived experiences is foundational to building school environments where all learners can truly belong. This is such an important conversation, especially for this time in the world. So here is Lindsay Lyons on navigating hard conversations in schools. Hey, Lindsay, welcome to the podcast. Hi, thanks so much for having me, Debbie. Thank you for reaching out and sharing your work with me. I was super intrigued when you connected and said, hey, I do this really interesting work and helping cultivate cultures and schools and facilitating conversations and
It just seemed very timely for me in terms of where we are in the world and a lot of the thoughts I have about how to foster more neurodivergent affirming cultures in schools. So would you take a few minutes to start setting the stage for the work that you do in the world? I'd love to know why, like why you do this, how you got into this.
Absolutely. So I am a former high school teacher. I was a special education teacher. I am currently a parent of a preschooler. So there's kind of the range of ages that I'm thinking through when I talk about this stuff. I mean, I think my deep why, like the really deep down. is that I don't want any child to feel so not right or that there's anything wrong with them to the point where it leads them to harm themselves or someone else. I mean, that's like my deepest, darkest thought that I would like to just remove from the world, that possibility for everyone. And then on a more like generative, positive level, just that we... I think struggle, particularly in the United States at this moment to see great models of conversation and seeking to understand instead of this is my position.
I'm entrenched in it. I am in an echo chamber. I am right. You are wrong. There is no value in you as a person, right? Like that's the kind of dynamic that we're seeing. And so I'd love to see, kind of create these spaces in our families and our schools where we find a better way forward. And I truly believe that kids are the ones who are going to find a different way because we all are struggling as adults.
So true. Yeah. So what does that actually look like? It's a job, I assume, but it seems like it's also your passion and your purpose. Explain to us exactly what you do and how you work with communities.
Yeah, so I think it is exactly that, right? It's my passion. So it's how I show up in just my interpersonal and family spaces. Like this is what I'm trying to do. I never purport to be an expert, but like I'm on the learning journey. But also professionally, it's very much, I usually call myself an educational justice coach. So thinking about how, We can, as an instructional coach or consultant coming into a school from the outside, like look at some various ways that we can be more inclusive, affirming, equitable of all brains and identities in the space of learning. And I think it often starts with just noticing what is not what we want and then thinking through ways to gather in partnership with students and families to get where we'd like to be conversationally or otherwise in the learning space.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What motivates Lindsay Lyons to focus on inclusion, equity, and neurodivergence in schools?
0:02–5:40
2
How does Lindsay describe her role as an educational‑justice coach and the work she does with schools?
5:40–11:01
3
Why are year‑long professional‑development supports more effective than one‑off workshops?
11:01–16:06
4
What are “challenge days” and how can they transform student‑teacher relationships?
16:06–22:09
5
How does giving students a voice change classroom dynamics and learning outcomes?
22:09–26:37
6
What is “constructive disorientation” and how does it spark lasting cultural change in schools?
26:37–33:03
7
How can families be invited into hard conversations without feeling threatened?
33:03–38:48
8
What resources and next steps does Lindsay recommend for educators and parents who want to start these conversations?
38:48–43:33
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
TPP 266a: A Conversation with Poet and Advocate LeDerick Horne
TPP 522: A Whole Child Approach to ADHD with Phil Boucher, M.D.
TPP 091a: A Conversation With Steve Silberman About His Book “Neurotribes”
TPP 521: A Conversation with Dr. Peter Gray About Restoring Childhood
TPP 253a: Advocate and Author Jonathan Mooney on Why Normal Sucks
TPP 520: Dr. Özgür Bolat on Why Rewards Backfire and the Real Science of Motivating Kids