UDL - Universal Design for Learning

Learning goals are the foundation of any effective curriculum. Only by clarifying what we want learners to accomplish can we begin to consider what assessments, methods, and materials will be most effective. Included are 10 tips developed by CAST Professional Learning that discuss learning goals from a UDL perspective.

Join Kit on September 16th in a Google Hangout to discuss how UDL is a practice that can help create a community,  culture and learning environment in schools.

Experience the latest in brain science, research and practice at the UDL Guidelines Institute that takes place on September 28th and 29th at the CAST headquarters in Wakefield, MA. 

UDL-IRN has created a great resource for designing the implementation of UDL in your school or district. Jamie Basham and Loui Lord Nelson, authors of this paper, provide important insight on the process to implement UDL. The topics included are:

• Understanding UDL
• Implementing UDL
• Common Misconceptions and Realities of UDL
• Understanding the Different Roles with UDL Implementation

This article includes excellent advice on how to engage learners using the UDL framework. UDL principles and guidelines are not step-by-step instructions. Instead, they serve as more of a framework or philosophy that can guide educators in developing and executing the goal of making learning more accessible for all learners. Luis Perez, author of Mobile Learning for All provides ways to get started with UDL.

The National Center on the Use of Emerging Technologies to Improve Literacy Achievement for Students with Disabilities in Middle School is researching and developing a technology-rich learning environment called “Udio” that will make it possible for schools to provide all learners with Universally Designed for Learning (UDL) literacy experiences as they read independently across the curriculum. Consider joining the research in this important product.

To achieve their mission and vision, the Center is leveraging the capabilities of the Web itself to create a more distributed ecosystem for adolescent literacy, termed “Udio,” where the goals are to:

1.  foster a passionate interest and investment in reading for learners who have traditionally been uninterested in, or disenfranchised by, traditional classroom literacy practices;
2.  substantially improve the reading comprehension skills of middle school learners who have experienced recurrent failure in the domain of reading.

In this introductory course, participants learn the research basis for UDL, practical applications of UDL to lesson design, and helpful technology tools that support flexible, inclusive instruction. Each course section brings together up to 20 educators in an online community of practice. The course consists of 14 sessions – 11 online sessions and 3 synchronous Web conference sessions.  

Launched in June 1014, UDL on Campus serves as a resource to higher ed as they embark on applying UDL in practice.

The resources on this site focus on how UDL can be used to address learner variability in postsecondary education settings in order to help ensure that all students receive a high-quality learning experience and are able to succeed. For background information about the UDL framework, visit the National Center on Universal Design for Learning

Members of the UDL-IRN Research Committee will lead a discussion regarding the current state of research regarding UDL. They will direct attendees to resources that summarize the research base on UDL. Expect a lively discussion in whether we should refer to UDL as a promising practice (which does not affirm UDL as an evidence-based practice) an evidence based practice, or an evidence-based framework.

This UDL-Danielson Crosswalk will be an important guide for any school where teachers apply UDL principles in practice.

"Developed through a collaborative project that included the following partners: Baltimore County Public Schools (MD), CAST, Danielson Group, Howard County Public Schools (MD), Lakeview Public Schools (St. Clair Shores, MI), and Towson University (MD), the UDL-Danielson Crosswalk offers an instrument that explicitly provides teachers with the critical connections they need to enhance their planning, instruction, and professional practice."

Starting Feb 4th, a free online course offered by the  ISTE Inclusive Learning Network will run a four-week SOOC (Small Supported Open Online Course). This course will enhance your skills in two exciting trends in education: mobile learning and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Through participation in this course you will not only learn about UDL and how to support its implementation with iOS devices and apps, you will see it modeled by the instructors as you participate in a dynamic community of practice and create your own UDL materials and resources.

Sign up soon as participation is limited to 50 participants!

The UDL Implementation Research Network (UDL-IRN) is hosting a summit focusing on UDL implementation and associated research on March 12 & 13, 2015 at The University of Southern Mississippi. This beautiful campus is located on the Gulf of Mexico beach in Gulfport, MS. The intent of this summit is to gather practitioners and researchers to build networks for supporting  the systematic implementation of UDL in pre-school, K-12, and higher education classrooms from across the globe.

Join expert classroom educators Jon Mundorf (Naples, Florida) and Alexis Reid (Boston, Massachusetts) as they discuss the ways in which UDL helps them teach more effectively and reach more students. They’ll discuss some of the challenges of applying UDL principles and share proven strategies for success. David Gordon, co-author of the 2014 book Universal Design for Learning: Theory and Practice, which featured both Jon and Alexis, will join them to talk about how the growing community of UDL practitioners is informing and shaping the theory.

The goal of UDL is to use a variety of teaching methods to remove any barriers to learning and give all students equal opportunities to succeed. UDL doesn’t specifically target kids with learning and attention issues. It’s about building in flexibility that can be adjusted for every student’s strengths and needs.

Here is one of the first graduate degree programs being offered in UDL at the University of San Diego.

Course of Study:

Earn this Masters of Education in California by completing 10 courses (3-units each) for 30 units of coursework. The program consists of five foundation courses including a capstone action research project as well as five specialization courses. You may start in any semester with any of the courses offered. The Capstone Seminar is the final course in the program and builds on knowledge gained in the research and specialization courses.

Universal Design Learning is a framework for learning that includes all learners.. Being grounded in socio-cultural theory, UDL views learning environments and social interactions as being key elements in development and learning. In UDL learners are allowed to express their learning in a variety of ways.

Do you have a burning question about UDL that you’d like clarified?   In this webinar, discover some of the most frequent myths and misconceptions around UDL and hear about the current CAST research and thinking being done to address these myths. Included in the conversation will be CAST co-founder, David Rose.