As the saying goes, "What goes around comes around." This rings true for Reece MacFayden’s journey—a neurodiverse student who faced struggles but eventually pursued a career in education support at TAFE, with the goal of helping others who share his experiences.
“Being neurodiverse isn’t a bad thing. Be yourself and do what you want to do with your life, you will be surprised how many people want to help you.”
If it wasn’t for the support of TAFE Gippsland’s Learning Skills Advisors, Reece MacFayden wouldn’t have kept going with his Certificate IV in Education Support.
“I was trying to keep myself on track and engaged, focused on assessment but my diagnosis makes it really hard to maintain motivation,” Reece explained.
“Time management is also a challenge and trying to make sense of assessments and when they're due.”
Student Wellbeing Advisor Kylie Corporente and Learning Skills Advisor Shar McMillan celebrate neurodiversity with student Reece MacFayden.
With the support of Geraldine and the Learning Skills team, Reece found his way back on track with his studies and was able to thrive in his learning environment—something he feels like he was unable to achieve during his time at school.
“Without them I wouldn’t still be enrolled in this course and everyone I’ve spoken to at TAFE is really nice and goes the extra mile, which helps a lot,” Reece said.
“I felt like I never got the opportunities to be true to myself at school, so I want to make sure others get these opportunities.”
This week is Neurodiversity Celebration Week—a dedicated time to recognise and celebrate the neurodiverse community which includes individuals with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, Tourette’s syndrome and other neurological differences.
So, what does Reece hope that awareness weeks like this can achieve for students studying with neurodiversity?
“Every student has their own way of their learning,” Reece said.
“No two people are the same even if they have the same diagnosis. Everyone has own ways of learning and processing information. Don’t make assumptions about neurodiverse students. Ask us what we need from you, ask us about our experiences. Get to know us.”
Find out more about Neurodiversity Celebration Week: www.neurodiversityweek.com/