Neurodiversity and the Crisis in Modern Education w/ Jake Noonan

Neurodiversity is at the heart of a growing crisis in modern education. It is the one that is shaping how young men learn, struggle, and carry their mental health challenges into adulthood.

In this episode of the Men’s Therapy Podcast, host Marc Azoulay sits down with Jake Noonan. He is an academic neurodiversity coach at the Neurodiversity Collective. His work focuses on young men and boys navigating the modern education system. Jake approaches neurodiversity not as a deficit to be corrected. He sees it as a fundamental difference in how individuals experience learning, creativity, and mental health.

Jake reflects on his own journey through gifted education and late ADHD diagnosis. He sheds light on years spent teaching in public education, private education, and alternative school models. He explains that for many boys, especially those with neurodiversity, school is not failing because they lack intelligence or motivation. It is failing because the system itself is outdated.

“I was diagnosed with ADHD at 29,” Jake shares. “When that happened, my entire life suddenly made sense.”

Jake describes how neurodiversity often goes unnoticed or misunderstood. Particularly in boys who are labelled as “gifted” but struggle emotionally, socially, or behaviorally. He emphasizes that modern education still operates on an industrial-era model. It is the one that values compliance over curiosity and standardization over individuality.

Marc guides listeners through a broader examination of the education system. He focuses on teacher burnout and the mental health consequences young men are carrying into adulthood.

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