USING UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING FOR AN EQUITABLE

USING UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING FOR AN EQUITABLE, ACCESSIBLE, AND

TRY THIS With your left hand, write down your approach to equitable teaching.

WHAT IS UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING (UDL)? Adapted from Universal Design in architecture, led by Ronald Mace in 1997. Seven key principles: 1. Equitable Use 2. Flexibility in Use 3. Simple and Intuitive Use 4. Perceptible Information 5. Tolerance for Error 6. Low Physical Effort 7. Size and Space for Approach and Use UDL: “The intentional effort to improve one’s course or assignment design in an effort to make learning more effective and accessible to those who have a learning challenge while at the same time making it more accessible to everyone. ” (Howarton in Zaloudek et al. , 2018, p. 45).

WHY USE UDL? Accommodation and accessibility are NOT the same thing. Accessibility, Equity, and Inclusion are NOT optional. Gives all learners an equal opportunity to be successful, regardless of accommodation needs or learning preferences. Creates an environment where ALL can learn. Allows us to provide quality, equitable educational experiences. Preemptively presents course content accessibly. Account for defined and undefined accessibility challenges.

HOW UDL MAKES FOR A MORE EQUITABLE, ACCESSIBLE, AND INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM Source: https: //community. canvaslms. com/groups/designers/blog/2017/10/16/ implementing-universal-design-for-learning-on-canvas

UDL PRINCIPLES

UDL GUIDELINES (SOURCE: CAST)

UDL AND THE BRAIN Source: CAST (2018). UDL and the learning brain. Wakefield, MA: CAST. Retrieved from http: //www. cast. org/our-work/publications/2018/udl-learning-brain-neuroscience. html

DO YOU USE UDL? Take this survey: https: //alludl. ca/investigate/udl-essentials/udl-selfevaluation/

BUT ISN’T IT A LOT OF WORK FOR LITTLE RETURNS? It can be a lot of work up front but presents great returns for students. Once it’s done, small modifications can be made as needed. You may not hear it, but students appreciate it!

IMPLEMENTING UDL Start small Use tools like the Microsoft Accessibility Checker and online tools Make sure videos are captioned and, if possible, use audio/video descriptions Think about how we teach and how students learn UDL Checklist: shorturl. at/fi. Q 47

ACCESSIBILITY TOOLS Blackboard Ally: https: //ally. ac/covid 19/ Contrast Checker: https: //contrastchecker. com Colour Contrast Analyzer: https: //developer. paciellogroup. com/resources/contrastanalyser/ Microsoft Accessibility Resources: https: //www. microsoft. com/enus/Accessibility/disability-answer-desk? activetab=contact-pivot%3 aprimaryr 9 Otter: https: //otter. ai/login WAVE Web Accessibility Tool: https: //wave. webaim. org

THINK UDL You are a UDL evaluator. Looking at the CAST Graphic Organizer, rank, in order of importance, the UDL guidelines. Make a list from most important to least important. Be sure to include the mark number to account for all of the marks. Write why you ranked this list the way that you did.

THINK UDL FOR YOUR OWN COURSES Choose one of your own course objects: a syllabus, document, Power. Point slide, or video, and apply this ranking to an existing learning object. For your course, delivery format, and document, which are the most important items in your ranking and why? As a UDL evaluator, how would you rank your document’s adherence to UDL principles?

ADDITIONAL UDL RESOURCES Black, J. , & Moore, E. J. (2019). UDL navigators in higher education: A field guide. Wakefield, MA: CAST. Bracken, A. , & Novak, K. (2019). Transforming higher education through universal design for learning. Abingdon and New York: Routledge. Burgstahler, S. E. (2012). Universal design in higher education: From principles to practice. (2 nd Ed. ). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press. CAST. (2018). http: //castprofessionallearning. org/free-udl-resources-and-tips/ Novak, K. (2016). UDL in the cloud: How to design and deliver online education using universal design for learning. Wakefield, MA: CAST. Tobin, T. J. , & Behling, K. (2018). Reach everyone, teach everyone: Universal design in higher education. Morgantown, WV: West Virginia University Press. Zaloudek, J. A. , Chandler, R. , Carlson, K. , & Howarton, R. (2018). Universal design for learning: Teaching all college students. Menomonie, WI: Nakatani Teaching and Learning Center.