Neurodiversity in the Classroom: A Qualitative Study on Teacher Perceptions and Their Impact on Pedagogical Practice

Abstract

This article presents the results of a doctoral qualitative study, framed within the interpretative paradigm, aimed at analyzing the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of neurodiversity and their impact on pedagogical practices and curricular adaptations in public schools in Guacarí, Colombia. Semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and classroom observations were conducted to identify how educators’ interpretative frameworks shape the inclusion of neurodivergent students. The findings reveal a central tension: although teachers show willingness to apply neurodidactic strategies, these are implemented in a fragmented and intuitive manner, limited by insufficient specialized training, weak institutional support, and the persistence of medicalized perspectives on neurodivergence. Thematic analysis indicated that the most innovative practices emerge when teachers recognize neurodiversity as a legitimate expression of human plurality rather than as a deficit. In response, a theoretical framework was developed that integrates neurodiversity, neurodidactics, and inclusion understood as cognitive justice, with the aim of transforming pedagogical conceptions and institutional culture. It is concluded that teacher training must go beyond a merely instrumental approach and move toward an epistemic horizon that enables the questioning of structures, the removal of barriers, and the consolidation of a multiscalar inclusive model. This article offers a conceptual and applied framework with the potential to influence teacher education, educational practice, and inclusive policy in the Latin American context.