As a part of Norwich School’s support of Neurodiversity Celebration Week, the neurodiversity group are interviewing Neurodiversity Champions at Norwich School. First up is Latin and Classical Civilisation teacher, Rahul Bagchi...
What does Neurodiversity Awareness week mean to you personally?
In the grand scheme of things, I am not that old, so I wasn’t at school too long ago. My school had strong SEN provision, but we did not have events to increase awareness of, let alone celebrate, neurodiversity. Personally, it is very pleasing to see how far the sphere of education has advanced in such a short period of time. Celebration of the differences and quirks of neurodivergence and uplifting neuroatypical people is crucial, as thinking differently sometimes leads us to creative or delightfully unexpected outcomes.
Do you have any Neurodiverse Role Models?
Ever since I was old enough to watch his films, I have adored Sir Anthony Hopkins. I am not an actor, but I cannot help but be enthralled by his total dedication to his craft and the artistic field itself. He was diagnosed as autistic in 2014 and went public with his diagnosis in 2017. There are two roles of his that I find utterly engrossing: Dr Hannibal Lecter (over three films) and King Lear (BBC, 2018). His performance as a bona fide psychopath who is equally fiendishly manipulative and intelligent cannot fail to captivate, and he evokes strong pathos as a king blind to real love and false admiration, standing out among an all-star cast.
What do you want people to know about Neurodiversity?
Do not be afraid of learning more about the various conditions under the neurodiverse umbrella through asking neuroatypical people about their experience. Of course, ask sensitively and don’t probe at insecurity, but most neuroatypical people would love to be treated just like everyone else. Society must dispel the stigma around talking about neurodivergence; only then will we be truly equal.
What is your favourite thing about being Neurodiverse?
I am autistic. I was diagnosed at eight years old. One great advantage of being autistic is that I have a great memory. If you’re in one of my L4/U4 Latin classes, you might notice that I’ll be able to refer you to relevant page numbers of De Romanis if you ask me a question. This is because, even after a short time of using De Romanis (I was only introduced to it when I joined Norwich School less than a year ago), I can remember the pages of the book, and in some cases, the exact contents of those pages. When I was in school, I committed vast sections of my textbooks to photographic memory so I could flick through the pages in my head at any time. Of course, the autism has set me back in some regards, so my life hasn’t been a smooth-sailing journey with the gift of a fantastic memory and no drawbacks whatsoever. However, I am proud of who I am (autism included) and how far I’ve come, and I wouldn’t change it for the world.
