Education research praised by American academic reviewers

The Informed SLP (Speech-Language Pathologists), based in Kansas, is a subscription service which simplifies complex research into easy-to-understand summaries and evidence-based clinical takeaways, designed to help busy speech-language clinicians stay current and apply the latest science in their practice. 

They have recently published a review based on a paper by Senior Lecturer Dr Paula Hamilton, from the University of Chester and Katie Roberts, a graduate from the MA Special Educational Needs programme, called ‘It’s not as clear cut as autistic boys versus artistic girls’, originally published in the Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs. 

The SLP noted how most published research is primarily based on a male/female binary and does not fully explore the nuance of gender diversity. It was interested in the research published by Paula and Katie as their paper looked at both similarities and differences between genders and led to suggestions for supporting young females in secondary education. The paper emphasised the need for looking beyond preconceived ideas, to acknowledge the different ways in which autism presents in intersection with gender and other aspects of identity, as well as promoting increased understanding of the internalised presentations of autism, which is often more common in females. 

Paula, who is Course Leader for MA Social Justice and Globalisation in Education, said: “I am delighted to see the findings of the paper being summarised by The SPL and disseminated to speech and language practitioners. I hope that this will help to enhance understanding of more subtle presentations which may present in some autistic females, whilst acknowledging the diverse ways autism may present irrespective of gender.”