Universal Design for Learning in the World Language Classroom

As stated by CAST, the UDL guidelines are powerful because they "offer a set of 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." The purpose of this website is to provide specific examples of how those suggestions can be implemented in the World Language classroom.

I wrote the site from the perspective of what I have done in my own classes, which is why you'll often see statements like "students did X" or "I gave students the choice of A, B, C." This narrative choice reflects my personal journey implementing UDL and I hope that it does not detract from the site's usefulness to others.

What is UDL and how can it help my language learners?

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is "a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn" (CAST 2018). UDL begins from the perspective that each learner in unique. That uniqueness encompasses learners' identities, past experiences, academic strengths, and barriers to learning. Moreover, these different characteristics of learners are not fixed; they change over time and can present differently across a variety of contexts, even from hour by hour. Barriers come in all different forms; they can come from within us or be imposed by our environment.

Let me offer a personal example. On a daily basis, the parts of my identity that might rise most to my consciousness are my roles as French teacher, mother and wife, my physical presentation as a short, glasses-wearing white woman, my self-perception as an introvert who is respected and liked by others, my confidence in being a successful learner, and my self-identification as overly anxious. Anxiety is a barrier that usually arises for me in situations where I need to meet new people, but some days it is a challenge for me even in settings where I am usually at ease. 

Anxiety is a barrier that comes from within me, but elements in the environment can heighten or reduce its impact.  The kindness and patience of others reduces the barrier that my anxiety presents, while an aggressive or impatient demeanor can ramp it up. I can also apply strategies that I have learned to reduce my anxiety.

My identity as a woman is not usually forefront in my mind and I do not perceive my gender or appearance as a barrier.  However some environments can - intentionally or not - pose barriers to me.  I think of experiences in home improvement stores and car dealerships when sales people focused all their attention on my husband or assumed that I was uninformed because of my gender. In home improvement stores, items are sometimes stocked on upper shelves that can only be reached by people who are taller than me. The sales people and I share a common goal: getting me to spend money. Nonetheless, the physical organization of a store or the assumptions of sales people can unintentionally create barriers that make it more difficult for us to reach that common goal.

When we think about our classrooms, it isn't difficult to imagine how our students could experience any number of barriers that prevent them from thriving.  As teachers, we are often aware of diagnosed disabilities that impact learning. Yet recognizing barriers that we unintentionally create can be difficult. Furthermore, that self-reflection can make us feel vulnerable, even defensive. Despite how uncomfortable it might be, acknowledging the barriers that impact our students and embracing our role in removing them is the first step in achieving truly equitable classrooms.

UDL is a framework that is respectful of students and invites partnerships between educators and students to determine the best path forward in learning.

It fosters a proactive mindset, allowing us to anticipate barriers that prevent students from learning, to engage students in plotting their own course as learners, and to plan effectively to reduce and eliminate obstacles.

How to use this site

There's no one right way to use this site, but allow me to offer some starting points.