This section explores the three principles of UDL in greater detail and explores how they can be used to facilitate the learning needs of all students. A range of digital tools and methodologies which support inclusion are provided, along with suggestions to improve teacher-generated learning content/resources.
Embedded Files
Multiple Means of Representation
Think about how information is presented to learners
Does the information provide options that help all learners:
reach higher levels of comprehension and understanding?
understand the symbols and expressions?
perceive what needs to be learned?
Multiple Means of Action and Expression
Think about how learners are expected to act strategically and express themselves
Does the activity provide options that help all learners:
• act strategically?
• express themselves fluently?
• physically respond?
Multiple Means of Engagement
Think about how learners will engage with the lesson
Does the lesson provide options that can help all learners:
• regulate their own learning?
• sustain effort and motivation?
• engage and interest all learners?
Click on the image below to view a video by CAST.org regarding this principle of UDL
Using Choice Boards to Support Inclusion
Choice boards are a powerful tool for engaging learners. Choice boards should:
focus on a learning goal by providing options to students about how they learn and practice concepts
support differentiation by including different levels of complexity and choices about how students present and demonstrate their learning.
For greater engagement, ask students for feedback on which activities they preferred and use this feedback to improve your choice boards over time. Alternatively, encourage students to create their own choice boards for a topic.
Below are three examples of choice boards. The first two support multiple means of expression and are not subject-specific, while the third combines multiple means of representation, engagement and expression for a subject-specific example, i.e. Geography.
This document may be shared in advance with learners in a flipped classroom scenario, could serve as a revision guide, or form part of a digital portfolio.
This document may be shared in advance with learners in a flipped classroom scenario, could serve as a revision guide, or form part of a digital portfolio.
Tools for Inclusion
Screencasts and Presentations:
Consider creating screencasts which enable teachers to create a digital recording of any instructional activity performed on a computer screen, which can be used as learning resources, learning tasks, and to provide learning support. They can provide learners with a student-centred and engaging learning experience in both distance and traditional learning settings. An effective pedagogy focused screencast is created through thorough planning and thoughtful and careful editing to resequence lesson elements, eliminate unnecessary portions, and generate a focused, easy-to-follow presentation.
Closed captions (CC)
Closed captions are a text version of the spoken part of a screencast or presentation. Closed captioning was developed to aid hearing-impaired people, but it's useful for a variety of situations.
Audio Transcriptions
Audio transcription is a written account of verbal communication. It transforms any file that is video or audio to text into a written experience for its audience. It may be verbatim or it may provide a summary of content.
Audio Description
Audio description is an accessibility tool growing in popularity. In addition to being an accommodation for blind and low vision viewers, it promotes a new way of learning through auditory means and can help individuals on the autism spectrum who may have difficulty recognising emotional cues, who are learning English as a second language, or who have other learning difficulties. Others, simply like to use audio description as a different way to consume video content when they are not able to dedicate time to viewing the content, but would instead prefer to just listen.
Text size/font
Ensure that the font size you use when creating content for learners is accessible for students. Many tools also have a zoom function which will help students to access text. Fonts should be clear and legible. Accessibility-friendly fonts include Tahoma, Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, and Times New Roman. Slab serif fonts including Arvo, Museo Slab, and Rockwell are also considered to be accessible. Open Dyslexic is an open source font, designed to increase readability for readers with dyslexia.
Colour and Contrast
Ensure that there is a suitable contrast between text and background. Certain background colours may make reading easier for some learners with dyslexia. Avoid patterned backgrounds.
Layout
Left align text, without justification. Avoid multiple columns and keep lines shorter in length; 60 to 70 characters is advised.
Pause and replay
Viewers can pause and replay content at their leisure. This allows learners to progress at their own pace and to direct their own learning.
Annotation/pointer tools
When using the Present mode in Google Slides or PowerPoint, teachers can also use the Closed-Captioning feature. Any visual content should also have audio descriptions, and teachers should be sure students know how to use the text-to-speech tools that are available on their devices, such as Google Read Aloud or Microsoft Immersive Reader. In instances where you are unable to use sites that vary in Lexile levels, tools like Smmry or Rewordify can help students to simplify online text. Age-appropriate digital storytelling tools could be utilised during lessons also: Chatterpix/ Book Creator/ Keynote/ DoInk Green Screen / iMovie, and can provide an engaging method to respond to lessons for students with a clear focus on pedagogy.
Asynchronous Options
Within a classroom, providing asynchronous options for students can allow them to learn at their own pace. Many teachers have become familiar with using video either as a form of lesson replacement or enhancement. EdPuzzle and Google Slides make it simple to select parts of videos to include in a lesson. They can also give students time to pause and reflect between segments. Students will be more motivated when they have interesting choices. Teachers can also incorporate choice boards into lessons from sources such as SlidesMania and Slides Carnival. These sites support differentiation by including different levels of complexity and choices about how students present and demonstrate their learning. Teachers can additionally use sites such as Newsela or The Smithsonian’s Tween Tribune to provide students with a variety of topics to encourage independence.
EdPuzzle has many impressive features that make it a very effective way of integrating video in instruction. It can be used in class or assigned to students to work on at home. As well as being used to support assessment, EdPuzzle is also a superb tool to support the Flipped Classroom model. One of the main benefits of EDPuzzle is that you can re-use a video lesson created by another teacher.
It encourages students to pay attention, promotes effective questioning and active learning, and presents material in a variety of ways, e.g. aural and visual. It is device neutral, i.e. it works on tablets, smartphones, laptops and PCs and can be integrated with other assessment tools such as Edmodo and Google Classroom.
Report abuse