When You Design for Everyone, EVERYONE Benefits from the Design

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Description:
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an inclusive pedagogical framework. In this video, I share the basics of UDL and a few practical ideas for implementing it.

In the early 1960s, visionary architect Selwyn Goldsmith designed the initial curb cut or dropped curb to encourage people with limited mobility to have access to city sidewalks. It was part of a larger movement (led by disability advocates) toward universal access in the built environment by changing policies, systems, and structures to promote full inclusion.

In the last few decades, architects, product developers, and UX designers have embraced this philosophy of universal design. Coined by architect Ronald Mace, universal design is built on the core belief that we should design environments to be useable by all people, "without the need for adaptation or specialized design."

This inclusive approach allows everyone to benefit from such designs.
Hence, caregivers pushing strollers benefit from curb cuts.
Similarly, viewers use closed captioning on videos regardless of hearing.
In other words, when you design for everyone, everyone benefits from the design.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) applies this same philosophy of universal design to every aspect of learning, from learning spaces to materials to instruction and assessment to classroom culture and behavior management.

Built around cognitive neuroscience, UDL is an inclusive educational framework that seeks to remove barriers while also keeping the learning challenging for all students.

A UDL approach includes a paradigm shift from
-from a deficit mindset to neurodiversity
-from singular accommodations to universally accessible scaffolds and supports
-from a teacher-centric view to a student-centered approach centered on student agency

In the 1990's, Dr. David Rose and the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) articulated the three UDL principals:
#1: Multiple means of engagement which focuses on the affective networks or the Why of Learning
#2: Multiple means of representation which focuses on the recognition network or the What of Learning
#3: Multiple means of action and expression which focuses on the strategic networks or the How of Learning
So what does this actually look like in the classroom? Well, there is no set prescriptive way but here are some ideas.
When it comes to the why of learning, teachers can focus on student interests, agency, and motivation. This helps students become self-directed, meaning they are self-starters and self-managers. It starts with student choice.
This might include choice menus, launching a Genius Hour, letting students select what they read or what problem they solve in math.
They can also pursue their questions with a Wonder Day activity or an inquiry-based learning project which starts with a provocation, which leads the students to ask their own questions, engage in research and data gathering where they then analyze the data and share their insights with others.
As educators, we can build interdependency into student collaboration so that every student has a voice in the learning community. Interdependence is that overlap where students work independently but still depend on each other.

This sense of ownership can help promote student self-regulation. Students can see their progress toward mastery as they set goals, monitor their progress, and reflect on their learning.

When it comes to what students learn, we can provide learners multiple methods for accessing the learning content. This might include using multiple font sizes, closed captioning, text-to speech technology, or the ability to change speed in audio and video.

It's also what happens when we front-loaded vocabulary and provide sentence frames that any students can access. It might also include incorporate graphic organizers or visuals to help process information as well as providing slideshows in advance.
When it comes to how students learn, we can provide learners with multiple methods for demonstrating what they are learning. They might include flexibility on timing and due dates for assignments and projects but it also might mean additional think time or more opportunities for practice and retrieval during a lesson.
We can provide calendars and checklists as well as project blueprints that break down tasks for students. We can provide choices for the methods students use to solve problems or the media format of their finished products.
Universal Design for Learning embraces the diversity of all learners so that all students are empowered to become self-directed problem-solvers and lifelong learners.