The UDL Guidelines are a tool used in the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. How could you use a Virtual Room as a way to drive teaching and learning in a way where all students can be successful, engaged, and represented in the space? Take a look at the UDL Guidelines below or on their website to view "concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities."
Share information in more ways than sound, voice, images and text alone.
Use flexible materials with settings that can be adjusted based on needs and preferences.
Construct meaning from words, symbols and numbers using different representations.
Make sure text and symbols don’t get in the way of the learning goal.
Use translations, descriptions, movement, and images to support learning in unfamiliar or complex languages.
Make learning come alive with simulations, graphics, activities and videos.
Build connections to prior understandings and experiences.
Accentuate important information and how it relates to the learning goal.
Support the process of meaning-making through models, scaffolds, and feedback.
Apply learning to new contexts.
Empower learners to take charge of their own learning.
Connect learning to experiences that are meaningful and valuable.
Foster a safe space to learn and take risks.
Set a vision for the goal and why it matters.
Rise to high expectations using flexible tools and supports.
Cultivate a community of learners.
Guide learning by emphasizing the role of effort and process.
Set personal goals that inspire confidence and ownership of learning.
Develop and manage healthy emotional responses and interactions.
Increase awareness around progress toward goals and how to learn from mistakes.
Interact with tools and environments that make learning physically accessible to all.
Open doors to learning with accessible tools and devices.
Express learning in flexible ways.
Share thoughts and ideas using tools that complement the learning goal.
Apply and gradually release scaffolds to support independent learning.
Practice setting challenging and authentic goals.
Formulate reasonable plans for reaching goals.
Support organization and memory using flexible tools and processes.
Analyze growth over time and how to build from it.
Explore the Virtual Room below and think about how you might use a room like this type of room with your students. How do you see elements of UDL embedded in the design and delivery?
Starting today, you will have the opportunity to take what you learned and create your own Virtual Room. Each day your work will build upon the previous day and at the end of the course, you will have a Virtual Room you can use with your students.
✍ Choose one bullet point from one of each of the three UDL guideline areas that you will focus on in intentionally incorporating into you virtual room. Make note of these for use on future days incorporating elements into your Virtual Room.
💺 Add additional elements to your room that fit into the UDL Guidelines. Elements could be bookshelves, pictures, furniture, Bitmojis, etc. Some examples of UDL in action:
Use website icons to represent links to specific websites.
Incorporate or represent meaningful tasks with icons that correspond to what the activity will entail.
Offer a variety of resources to explore in a room. Try to incorporate a variety of examples as they relate to the 6 Language Domains - listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, and visually representing.
✅ Complete the reflection form below to share your thoughts (and receive SCECH credit for today).
⬇ Reflection and Question ⬇:
My biggest take-away from the learning today, thought(s), or ways I am already using this with students that I would like to share after reviewing the shared materials was...