Sherli Christina Mariadoss
Kristu Jayanti (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru,
Pages: 294-307
The neurodiversity paradigm views neurodevelopmental conditions as natural variations,
not deficits. Yet Indian research on neurodivergence still focuses mainly on clinical and
educational perspectives, with little attention to lived experience and school-age
narratives remain especially scarce compared to higher-education accounts. This study
examined how neurodivergent experiences are represented across Indian educational
contexts through publicly available personal narratives. Using thematic analysis, thirty
longform features were purposively sampled across from Indian digital platforms such
as Feminism in India, The Swaddle, The Better India, and Mynd stories. The inclusion
criteria covered first person or closely mediated accounts of neurodivergent individuals’
educational experiences in India, published in English on the specified platforms; while
the exclusion criteria ruled out clinical case reports, opinion pieces lacking narrative
content, non Indian contexts, and duplicate features. Inductive coding generated codes
clustered into six themes i.e. Journey Towards Recognition, Negotiating Neurodivergent
Identity, Educational Experiences Across Life Stages, Stigma, Exclusion, and
Psychological Impact, Support Systems and Advocacy, and Representation and Voice.
Within these areas, younger children’s stories were mostly told through parents or
journalists, while adults and college students tended to narrate their own experiences
directly. This points to a gap in whose voice gets represented at different ages, and the
findings call for earlier self-expression opportunities, inclusive education practices,
and broader representation across life stages in Indian neurodivergence discourse