I was emailed a fascinating internal news article yesterday about the value of running Relaxed Tutorials. The idea comes about as a follow-on from Relaxed Events in arts and culture events in theatres and cinemas.
The trial was run by Classics tutors as part of their faculty's Scholarship of Teaching and Innovation group and was aimed at increasing participation of autistic students, with of course the added benefit that Universal Design has advantages for all students.
(Anecdotally here I'm going to mention that of all the subjects in the Humanities it is fitting that Classics have decided to try this approach. My neurodivergent son is a second year Classics student at Royal Holloway and swears blind that while autistic men are drawn to Physics and Computer Science, their autistic sisters can be found in equally large numbers in Classics.)
The list of steps taken is reassuringly close to what I make a point of doing in my tutorials: not calling upon any particular students, allowing the use of chatbox or microphone, not expecting the use of their webcams even in tiny groups. The only difference is that all my tutorials have to be recorded for the benefit of those unable to attend.
I like also that they mentioned the providing of slides beforehand. I always do that. My own tutorgroup are used to me doing that and also are very aware that my own autism diagnosis impacts on my willingness to accommodate for their needs and make things as accessible as possible. However, when I was preparing for a module-wide tutorial before Christmas and sent my usual group email mentioning the availability of my slides several of the students became concerned that this was because the tutorial was not going ahead after all - it would seem I am unusual. I think that the next time (i.e. next week) I will mention my autism and my intention to provide as accessible as possible resources and that hence my slides are available early as part of my Relaxed As Possible Tutorial approach.