UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR

LEARNING

Delbert Heistand

Morris Schott Middle School

WHAT IS UNIVERSAL DESIGN?

The design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.

Emphasizes meeting the individual needs of a broad range of

students

Attempts to remove barriers to the learning process without watering

down academic standards

What are the components of universal design for learning?

Multiple means of representation, to give learners various ways of acquiring information and knowledge,

Multiple means of expression, to provide learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know,

Multiple means of engagement, to tap into learners' interests, offer appropriate challenges, and increase motivation.

http://www.cast.org/about/index.html

What are the benefits of universal design for learning?

Accommodations are integrated in curriculum/instruction in advance.

Meets the needs of all learners, not just students with “labels.”

Provides opportunities for more engaged learning for all learners.

Promotes student choice and internal locus of control

Recent Brain Research

Three Systems for Learning • Recognition networks - identify & interpret

patterns of sound, light, taste, smell, and touch Instructional Technology

Strategic networks – plan, execute, & monitor internally generated mental & motor actions & skills

Affective networks – interact with the world influenced by state of emotions, mood, interest, personality, motivations, memory, & biological state

UDL principle #1

UDL Principal #1 supports recognition learning, provide multiple, flexible methods of presentation Recognition networks are specialized to sense and assign meaning to patterns and thus facilitates the identification and understanding of information, ideas, and concepts.

Multiple representations of content What options do teachers have for presenting content? Video Audio Text Only Graphical Combinations

To support diverse recognition networks teachers should: Provide information via multiple media types and formats Provide multiple examples of the same concept Highlight critical features Support background context

UDL principle #2

Inspiration is an example of commonly available tool that can become Assistive Technology for some children because tool is so well designed.

Multiple means of expression & control.

What options can teachers give students for responding to learning activities? Writing Drawing Reading Researching Designing Presenting Acting

Inspiration program Concept map or outline of

ideas Assistive technology for

children who need a writing scaffold

Instructional technology for all students

UDL Principle #3

UDL Principal #3 supports affective learning, provide multiple, flexible options for engagement.

Multiple means of engagement What are some strategies teachers use to engage students? Learning Styles Self-selection Individualized learning Motivation

UDL On-line Tools netTrekker

a search engine with built-in text-to-speech and readability levels. http://ntdi.nettrekker.com/

Read, Write, Think . Is an online resource of highly interactive lessons and engaging student materials from the international reading association. http://www.readwritethink.org/

vRoom. Is a free distance learning tool that gives up to three users at a time interactive audio, video, virtual whiteboard, and application sharing . students can use a vRoom to collaborate on projects together . students who are homebound can use vRoom to “join” a classroom in real time. http://www.elluminate.com/vroom/

OmniOutliner (MacX) Is one of the best text-based outliners available. http://www.omnigroup.com/applications/omnioutliner/

These four internet tools that will enable my students to achieve success in my classroom. The tools are breaking down the barriers of learning and are creating high expectations and standards.

Morris Schott Middle School

Morris Schott Middle School The middle school where I teach would

benefit tremendously from the UDL theory. The demographics of my school is screaming for the Universal Design for Learning Model.

Currently, teachers are trained in the SIOP model. There has not been a lot of support from the teachers and it shows with our state scores. The UDL model has shown the benefits of the program in regards to learning.

Resources

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Reaching and engaging all learners through technology. Baltimore: Author.

Research & development in Universal Design for Learning. http://www.cast.org/research/index.html

Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved from http://www.cast.org/teachingeverystudent/ideas/tes/