Kinza Pirzada

Every journey into a classroom is different. They all end at the same desk.

Fifteen years in four school systems, and a doctorate in how schools change.

Six lines, one desk.
Who I work with

Who I work with.

Inclusive education is built by everyone around the child. Pick the line that is yours.

Teachers

Coaching, co-teaching and neurodiversity-affirming classroom design.

Follow the teacher line

Principals and school leaders

Educator capacity building for a whole school.

Follow the principal line

Support staff

You see the ten minutes before the incident.

Follow the support staff line

Parents

When your child keeps getting sent out of the room, the room is saying something.

Follow the parent line

Students

Belonging is built, not earned.

Follow the student line

Policy makers and system leaders

Special education policy through a neurodiversity-affirming lens.

Follow the policy line
Where every line ends

One kid,
one desk
and a room
they belong at.

Belonging is not something a child arrives with. It is something a classroom is built to produce.

Stop teaching children to cope with rooms that dysregulate them. Redesign the room. My work is the part in between: the tools, the PD & the research that get a school from agreeing with the idea to living inside it.

What the cohort said

“There is always a reason for a behaviour or meltdown.”Cohort participant
“I love the concept of assuming competence.”Cohort participant
“The pilot helped me analyze my practice and routines. The sessions were great.”Cohort participant
The argument

Redesign the room.

Most social-emotional learning asks the child to change. Stop teaching children to cope with rooms that dysregulate them.

Examples for
The student can't self-regulateThe transition offers no warning and no exit
Build the child's resilienceRemove the demand that requires it
Accommodations for the identified fewAccess designed for everyone from the start
Behaviour is the problem to solveBehaviour is data about the environment
Belonging is how a student feelsBelonging is what a school is built to grant
Inclusion is a teacher's commitmentInclusion is an institution's capacity
Five locks, five keys

The barrier lens.

One routine, carpet to desks. Find the lock before you reach for a key.

Examples for
  1. 1"Two minutes, then back to your desks."
    One spoken cue, once. No way to see time pass.Click to unlock a new perspective
    A visible timer. Two steps posted.
  2. 2Twenty students stand up together for the next activity.
    Peak noise and traffic, right when memory is loaded.Click to unlock a new perspective
    Release by table.
  3. 3Find the book. Find the page.
    An organising task nobody taught.Click to unlock a new perspective
    Materials pre-set. Page marked.
  4. 4"Write a paragraph about the character."
    One channel. No model. No way to check.Click to unlock a new perspective
    Task written up. One worked example.
  5. 5One student hasn't started.
    Four barriers, about to be logged as non-compliance.Click to unlock a new perspective
    Read backwards.
Where design happens

Four domains.

Every classroom is designed in four places, whether anyone meant to or not.

Language

What adults say sets what they expect.

Environment

Sound, light, traffic, and permission to leave.

Curriculum

Universal design, built in, not bolted on.

Relationship

Co-regulation first. Repair after rupture.

The model

Designing for Belonging.

A year of opt-in, job-embedded learning. Administrators protect the time and stay out of the room.

  1. 1AwakeningWeeks 1 to 6. Mindsets, shared language, safety. Delivered and evaluated.
  2. 2MobilizationWeeks 7 to 22. Practice, experimentation, reflective inquiry.
  3. 3AccelerationWeeks 23 to 36. Alignment, coherence, mentoring.
  4. 4InstitutionalizationWeeks 37 to 48. Sustainability, onboarding, scaling.

Phase one moves what educators know and do. What makes it hold is the open question.

From policy to practice

Research.

Doctoral research

From Policy to Practice: Embedding Neurodiversity-Affirming Pedagogy through Educator Capacity-Building. Doctor of Education, Western University, 2025. Supervisor: Dr. Scott Lowrey.

Read the full text (PDF, Scholaris@Western)

Current study

To be announced.

Talks, teaching, district work

My contributions.

PosterFeb 2026From awareness to actionUniversity of Toronto. Canadian Health and Wellbeing in Developmental Disabilities ConferenceClick for more details
Role · Presenter

Presented the poster From Awareness to Action: Neurodiversity-Affirming Leadership for Inclusive Systems of Care and Education at the Canadian Health and Wellbeing in Developmental Disabilities Conference, University of Toronto.

Conference poster listing

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Refereed talkFeb 2026Breaking the frameSkwxwú7mesh Early Years Conference, Squamish, BCClick for more details
Role · Speaker

Gave a refereed talk, Breaking the frame, at the Skwxwú7mesh Early Years Conference in Squamish, BC.

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Invited talkJan 2026From compliance to connectionCapilano University Speaker Series, North Vancouver, BCClick for more details
Role · Invited speaker

Invited to speak on moving from compliance to connection: the Capilano Universe lecture Rethinking Inclusion Through a Neurodiversity-Affirming Lens, part of the 2026 Capilano University speaker series, North Vancouver, BC.

Series announcement · Event listing

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PodcastOct 202410 TalksInclusive Learning and Autism: Navigating Social Skills in the Classroom. Interviewed by district principals.Click for more details
Role · Guest

Guest on the 10 Talks podcast, interviewed by district principals about inclusive learning, autism and social skills in the classroom.

Listen on Spotify

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Internal reportJun 2026Designing for Belonging, Phase 1Evidence of research-informed leadership impactClick for more details
Role · Author

Wrote and presented the Phase 1 report internally on Designing for Belonging, documenting evidence of research-informed leadership impact.

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Facilitation2024 to 2026BC Teachers' FederationEquity, anti-oppression and inclusive practice, province-wideClick for more details
Role · Facilitator

Facilitated sessions on equity, anti-oppression and inclusive practice for the BC Teachers' Federation, province-wide, 2024 to 2026.

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Teaching2024 to 2026Capilano UniversityChild development, inclusive practice, the education assistant programClick for more details
Role · Faculty

Teaching child development and inclusive practice in the Education Assistant program at Capilano University, 2024 to 2026.

Capilano University campus directory

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Teaching2016 to 2017Sprott Shaw CollegeInstructor, Education Assistant ProgramClick for more details
Role · Instructor

Instructor in the Education Assistant Program at Sprott Shaw College.

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Collaboration2024 to 2025Ts̓zil Learning CentreWith Lil'wat Nation learners and educators, Mount Currie, BCClick for more details
Role · Collaborator

Worked alongside Lil'wat Nation learners and educators at Ts̓zil Learning Centre in Mount Currie, BC.

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Collaboration2021 to 2026Surrey School DistrictEducator capacity building for inclusive practice by coaching, co-teaching, and coordinating across the district.Click for more details
Role · District collaborator
  • Coaching teachers one-on-one.
  • Co-teaching in classrooms.
  • Coordinating supports across the district.
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Fifteen years, four school systems

My teaching experience.

  1. 2010Columbia UniversityChemistry lab TA for undergraduate courses
  2. 2012South Bronx, NYLead special education teacher
  3. 2015South Chicago, ILClassroom teacher
  4. 2017North Vancouver, BCDivision teacher, a school built for students with learning differences
  5. 2021Surrey, BCInclusive education helping teacher, supporting over 50 school teams
  6. 2024Capilano UniversityFaculty member, Faculty of Education and Human Development
  7. 2026Mississauga, ONResearch, writing, consulting
Education
Western UniversityMPEd Social Justice, Equity and Diversity, 2022EdD Educational Leadership, 2025
Touro CollegeMS General and Special Education, 2014
Columbia UniversityBS Pre-Medical Sciences, 2011BA Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies, 2011

Ontario College of Teachers. British Columbia Certified Teacher.

Contact

Tell me where you're starting from.

KınzaEdD