6 minute read
Encouraging Participation
How neurodiversity can benefit society
In attempting to deal with stress, most of us can deal with the pressure that builds or we make a decision to seek a safe space to collect ourselves and regulate our sensory needs before returning to what we were doing. However, finding a suitable space can be a challenge for some, and without such a space, it can be hard to participate fully in education and society. Talents can be missed, and socialisation skills may be impacted.
Participation is an essential component of a healthy and fair society, whether religion, race, sexual orientation, disability or neurodiversity, society benefits from different perspectives (see page 17).
Neurodiversity is the concept that brain differences are natural variations – not deficits, disorders or impairments.
Neurodiversity is a broad spectrum, it can mean ADHD, autism, dyslexia and others, and each of these affects the person differently. These individuals can face significant challenges daily; in many cases, their challenges are not visible to those around them, and others may be masking their symptoms to fit in which can be exhausting. Just like everyone else, no two neurodiverse people think, feel, or experience life, in the same way.
A trait that many of these people do share, is that they are more sensitive to noise, light and the environment than neurotypical people, and overstimulation can lead to a feeling of dysregulation and being overwhelmed.
Traditionally this has been managed by a sensory room, but these take up a lot of space, take time to use, and used properly, should be managed by an occupational therapist which is also costly. These factors mean that they are rarely found outside of specialist environments.
What was needed was something smaller, more reliable, faster and self-sufficient. Luckily that is exactly what Cubbie offers; a product manufactured in the UK and Ireland and with their head office in Co. Mayo.
David McIntyre, whose was inspired by his real-life family experiences, is the brains behind the Cubbie, and it’s those experiences that inspire him to continue to refine and perfect his product.
David explains: “I am the inventor and managing director of Cubbie. I have four wonderful children and a lovely wife. Two of our children are autistic. Until we noticed their sensory sensitivity, we had no idea about autism.
Their school tried to help, but they, too, struggled for knowledge and resources. Like the teachers, we found this frustrating. I quickly decided I wanted to help solve the problem rather than fight the system.
I am an engineer by trade and used this skill to build the first Cubbie in my garage in my spare time. I wanted to help my children initially. It worked amazingly well; and my family loved it. Since then, Cubbie has become a successful business helping thousands of neurodiverse people participate more fully in education and society.”
So, what is a Cubbie? It is an easy-to-use, immersive, safe, personal space of sound and vision free of disruptions, driven by software and wheelchair friendly. It measures 1.7m square and is 2.3m high and runs off a standard 13-amp plug. Not just confined to schools; stadiums, hospitals, respite care and libraries are also installing them.
Most users have their own unique Cubbie Profile in the cloud created by the Cubbie occupational therapist in combination with their software. The advantage of a personalised Cubbie Profile is the software helps schedule Cubbie Sprints to prevent dysregulation keeping disruption to a minimum. It also means that users can pick up where they left off at their last session and progress is monitored. A session is called a Cubbie Sprint and lasts for between 5 and 15 minutes.
David explains, “We want the student to have maximum time in the classroom, not the Cubbie”.
Users can regulate their sensory needs predictably and reliably within five to fifteen minutes, and students are able to leave whenever they want. This gives the student sufficient time to benefit from the experience while also being able to return to their daily routine very quickly, maximising participation. It also reduces teacher stress and disruption to the class. The results have been incredible. With Cubbie, schools can do more with less. Schools report that they can manage more than twenty students with a Cubbie, verses a maximum of 4 without, freeing up precious teaching time.
Although those with autism benefit the most from using a Cubbie, they are also extremely helpful for anyone with ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, and dyscalculia. Not to mention neurotypical students and teachers can use a Cubbie Sprint to ease their stress, anxiety and for mindfulness.
Many Schools want a Cubbie but are facing a funding crisis and risk being unable to solve a real problem quickly, but businesses are stepping up. They partly or fully fund Cubbies for schools. Recent support has come from Walls Construction, AWS and Aviva as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Cubbie has received numerous awards for its lifechanging technology, such as the Innovation Award at the National Enterprise Awards 2022, an honour at the Diversity In Tech Awards, the BITA Charles Darwin award and the Causeway Exchange Health and Wellbeing award.
But to David, the true triumph comes not from plaques, trophies, and nominations but from the ability to impact those who may require support the most positively.
David concludes: “Society is rapidly changing to be more inclusive. There is more understanding and desire to include people, whether that be ramps for wheelchair users, hearing loops or textured pavements. A Cubbie helps neurodiverse people participate in and benefit from a full education and become active members of Society.”
Ultimately there are many things we can do to encourage participation and therefore enjoyment from our communities. Shopping centres have started having sensory hours when the lights are dimmed and music turned off, there is more acceptance of people wearing headphones in the workplace and a greater desire to find out what someone can do, rather than what they can’t. With the Cubbie, schools and parents can help children when they are still developing, help them back into the classroom to learn and socialise with others, and show them that they are cared for and understood.
If you want to learn more about Cubbie’s incredible work, you can visit their website https://cubbie.ie or www.Cubbie.co.uk
Check out Cubbie’s various social media channels on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. It could just prove to have a tremendous impact upon the lives of those that are closest to you, if not your own life too.
