Universal Design for Learning in CS Education

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to designing educational spaces, resources, and practices that aims to make education welcoming and accessible to everyone, including (but not limited to) people with physical disabilities, learning disabilities and disorders, varying educational backgrounds, and varying access to resources.

Depending on your particular role as a TA, you might not have much input about course design. But keeping the principles of UDL in mind as you interact with students can help you get perspective on how the structure of the course might be impacting their learning.

Principles of Universal Design for Learning

• Multiple means of representation

• Multiple means of action and expression

• Multiple means of engagement

What UDL Might Look Like in CS

• Delivering key content in multiple forms: readings, short videos, class discussion and activities, etc.

• Providing students with different ways to demonstrate what they've learned: individual assignments, group assignments, quizzes, projects, peer code reviews, preparing slideshows or posters

• Motivate student learning in different ways: explain why the course content is important to learn and what applications it has, make objectives and expectations for specific activities clear and invite clarification questions, assign short reflections to encourage students to regulate their own learning process

Accessibility in CS

In higher education, especially at private institutions, accessibility concerns are often addressed only as they become relevant to current students. Here are some common examples:

• Computer labs are designed to maximize the number of computers in the space rather than making sure there is plenty of space for people to move freely and easily between rows

• Printed text books are very expensive to purchase, and the cost of an online textbook can't be partially recuperated by selling to a used bookstore at the end of the semester

• Examples and assignments draw from cultural knowledge (such as games) not shared by all students

• Autograded work does not provide much information about ways a student could improve, just information about which tests their submission failed

• No assistive technology on hand for students with sight, hearing, or mobility impairments

• While it is not required, students are expected to buy their own computers which can run software needed for their courses

It is important to note that some of these are not products of faculty course design, but rather occur when departments are expected to operate without the staffing, space, or funding to meet the needs of a large number of majors.

This barely scratches the surface of accessibility concerns and how Universal Design can be used to improve the learning experience for everyone. To learn more about this topic, explore the CAST and DO-IT websites.