Universal Design

for Learning

Learning strategies that are universal by design.

What is Universal Design for Learning?

Universal Design for Learning, or UDL, is an approach to curriculum design, instruction, and assessment developed in the 1990s by Anne Meyer and David Rose of the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST). Based on the "universal design" principles first elaborated by pioneering architect Ronald Mace, UDL starts by considering the needs of all students, not just the hypothetical "average student," and then builds a classroom and curriculum to meet those diverse needs. UDL classrooms provide the environment, instruction, and resources necessary for all students to become independent, enthusiastic, self-directed learners.

Want to know more? Here's a TED Talk by Todd Rose, high-school dropout turned Harvard faculty member, discussing "The Myth of Average"

UDL Guidelines

The UDL approach recognizes that every student learns differently. Rather than asking students to fit themselves into an unyielding curriculum, the UDL curriculum is flexibly designed to fit diverse students by providing multiple means of engagement, representation, and action & expression.

This graphic organizer, developed by CAST, succinctly outlines the UDL Guidelines that form the backbone of the UDL approach to curriculum design.

For more information, check out the CAST website.

Artifacts and bags arrayed as part of a student-created museum display. Grove School, Redlands, CA.

Students working together at the Farm Campus. Grove School, Redlands, CA.

Relaxed classroom environment with flexible seating designed by teacher Rebecca Malmquist, Hastings, MI. Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/flexible-classroom/

Papered wall reserved for student quotes, questions, ideas, and good news. Rebecca Malmquist's high school classroom, Hastings, MI. Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/flexible-classroom/

What does UDL look like in the classroom?

First and foremost, a UDL classroom provides FLEXIBILITY. Utilizing a variety of materials, technology, and instruction techniques, the UDL classroom is designed to provide appropriate support for each student to become an "expert learner."

UDL in Action: An Alberta Story (Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium)

This video from 2019 shows a variety of students and teachers working together in an inclusive, UDL-based learning environment at Vital Grandin School, Greater St. Albert Catholic School Division, Alberta, Canada.

What is so special about UDL?

Teaching and learning approaches come and go. The new thing in education today may be the failed promise of tomorrow. Teachers, parents, administrators, and students rightly wonder, what does UDL offer that's significantly better than what came before? Why do we think UDL is more than just a passing fad?

Well, most importantly, because it works!

A recent meta-analysis by Matthew James Capp of peer-reviewed research on UDL indicates that "UDL is an effective teaching methodology for improving the learning process for all students" (Capp, 2017, The effectiveness of universal design for learning: A meta-analysis of literature between 2013 and 2016).

UDL is rooted in decades of research from neuroscience, education, and cognitive psychology. It reflects our best understanding of how individuals think, learn, and grow. UDL is not a "dumbing down" of the curriculum, but rather an amplification of the instruction and the expectations for all students.

"UDL is based upon the most widely replicated finding in educational research: learners are highly variable in their response to instruction."

- CAST Research Evidence

The two most important UDL precepts are

(1) understanding what the true goal of a particular lesson or unit is and why it is important for students to learn; and

(2) allowing maximum flexibility in how the learning goal can be achieved through differentiated representation, engagement, and expression.

A UDL lesson plan is not one-size-fits-all. Each student has some freedom to come to the lesson, explore the information, and display their knowledge in their own way, so long as the teaching goal is achieved.

Design Thinking Process and UDL by Dr. Jackie Gerstein. Retrieved from https://barbarabray.net/2017/06/08/design-thinking-process-and-udl-planning-tool/

Multiple means of expression for deep understanding. Retrieved from https://www.scoop.it/topic/udl-universal-design-for-learning/?&tag=multiple+means+of+action+and+expression

Weighing the PROS and CONS of UDL

CONS

UDL requires significant planning and investment on the part of the teacher. Lesson plans, materials, classrooms, and classroom management all need to be reconsidered and possibly reconfigured for UDL implementation.
Highly differentiated assessments may be difficult to grade uniformly. (Rubrics are very helpful in the flexible UDL classroom)
Alternative and "authentic" assessments may not adequately prepare students for high-stakes standardized tests.
Parents may be resistant to flexible instruction and relaxed classrooms that may not feel familiar or rigorous.
Without clearly articulated learning goals, students may feel adrift or overwhelmed by choice.

PROS

Students have the opportunity to work with their strengths and show their knowledge more fully.
Teachers can maintain high expectations for all students, even as those expectations are individualized.
Accommodations and modifications for students with IEPs and 504 plans can be designed into the UDL lesson plan ahead of time, rather than ad hoc during instruction or assessment.
All students will benefit from a variety of instructional technologies and techniques, as well as the freedom to examine and construct knowledge on their own terms.
Teachers can spend more time guiding and supporting students and less time lecturing them.
The UDL focus on emotional intelligence and executive functions benefits all students as they navigate growing up and learning how to learn.
Explicit learning goals help all students know what they are doing and why.
Advanced/interested students have the freedom to dig deeper into topics alongside their peers.

Want to know more? Listen to episodes of the UDL in 15 Minutes podcast moderated by Loui Lord Nelson. Or, read this insightful research paper, by Jana Nicol of the UDL Project, investigating teacher and student attitudes about UDL and its implementation in the classroom.

How can I implement UDL in my classroom?

A UDL classroom requires significant planning to design a curriculum and learning environment that are as universally supportive and flexible as possible. The existing curriculum, physical classroom, teaching materials, instructional techniques, unit sequencing, and pacing all need to be considered in light of the specific and diverse needs of the anticipated students. Then, barriers to learning must be identified and eliminated as much as possible. The CAST website is a good place to start your UDL journey.

If a complete overhaul of your classroom and curriculum is not feasible, the list below contains links to some resources with simple, do-it-now ideas to help you incorporate a little bit (or a lot!) of UDL into any classroom.

Understanding the physics of golf in Mr. Andy Brodi's science class, Richards Middle School, Fraser Public Schools, MI. Retrieved from https://www.macombdaily.com/fraser-public-schools-leads-the-way-with-universal-design-for-learning-classrooms/article_8574ca18-b5a0-11e9-8182-efaa13a15736.html

Brooke Markle's classroom with flexible seating. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/article/7th-grade-teachers-shift-flexible-seating

Meditation in Marilee Sprenger's classroom. Retrieved from https://www.middleweb.com/40116/the-break-up-letter-bring-sel-alive-in-class/

Collaborative joy. Retrieved from https://www.readingrockets.org/article/supporting-students-autism-10-ideas-inclusive-classrooms

Lorrie Hokayem's AVID class during group discussion. Retrieved from https://www.greenwichtime.com/news/article/Western-Middle-seventh-graders-avid-about-6724250.php

What resources do I need to create a UDL classroom?

Just like individual students, every classroom will have unique resource needs driven by the subject(s) taught, the students, the school, and the teacher. That said, all UDL classrooms will contain more manipulables (physical objects that students can use to learn), assistive technologies and electronics, alternative seating arrangements, and student-controlled spaces than a typical or traditional classroom. In addition, the UDL teacher will use a wide variety of instruction methods and technologies, with an emphasis on student-centered learning methods, concept layering, and thematic units with ample opportunities for hands-on learning.

Sounds like a learning utopia! This section contains links to resources to help you on your journey to a UDL classroom.

Teacher Sang Lee displaying a DNA model constructed by Maud C. Munn, 12th grade, Linden School, Toronto, Canada. Retrieved from https://www.lindenschool.ca/grade_12_biology_dna_3d_models

Get teaching materials and support. The Goalbook Toolkit has a page dedicated to UDL-Aligned Strategies with --so many-- tools and instructional methods organized by the UDL design principles of engagement, representation, and expression. Create an account and gain access to printable materials and detailed explanations of methods and materials free for 15 days (Note: the content is sold to schools and districts, not individual teachers). Here's a link to a white paper on UDL created by the folks at Goalbook.

The Center for Universal Design in Education out of the University of Washington provides a variety of deep-dive articles and learning resources for teachers with an emphasis on technology and accessibility.

Here's a handy UDL Guidelines Checklist document (PDF) for teachers that provides a *detailed* list of ways to provide multiple means of engagement, representation, and expression.

History lesson at Montessori Community School of Charleston, NC. Retrieved from https://www.postandcourier.com/news/montessori-gets-middle-school/article_d6741395-010e-5021-a31e-c0b88bb023ef.html

Get started with UDL curriculum design and lesson planning. Try the lesson-plan-building tool at the CAST UDL Exchange site. The site also contains loads of UDL resources and collections of publicly shared UDL lesson plans. You need an account to access the lesson plan builder, but it's FREE.

The UDL Implementation and Research Network (UDL-IRN) website is a wealth of resources including this very helpful instructional planning document.

The UDL Project website has links and PDFs for a wide variety of UDL tools and resources from Lesson Plan Templates to Bloom's Taxonomy charts.

UDL Learning Spaces Idea Kit crated by Gould and Evans + UDL-IRN. Retrieved from https://blog.gouldevans.com/gould-evans-partners-with-udl-on-new-space-design-strategies/

Design your physical classroom. Check out this webpage highlighting an architectural collaboration between Gould Evans architects and UDL-IRN to create learning environments that enable rather than disable learners. The collaboration team also developed a UDL Learning Spaces Idea Kit (see the photo above) that considers everything from seating and wall space to fidgeting and community culture. Well worth checking out!

Also, this blog post by Lisa Carey on the Kennedy Krieger Institute website is a nice introduction to inclusive design for classrooms.

"If we accept that space affects behaviors, and behaviors, over time, affect culture, and culture trumps strategy, then hadn’t we better make sure our learning spaces are in alignment with our learning strategies?!"

- Gould Evans architects

{FYI: The National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) was mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 to address learning barriers presented by printed texts. NIMAS is a technical standard for digital files (in XML) that publishers of educational texts must meet. NIMAS-compliant files allow the creation of specialized formats (e.g., Braille, audio books) to serve students with print disabilities.}