1. Craig Spooner ACCESS Project Coordinator
Universal Design for Learning: A framework for good teaching, a model for student success
Thanks to Mike Palmquist and to all of you inviting here today…
I’m Craig Spooner ACCESS Project, a federally funded grant working to improve teaching and learning through the application of something called “universal design for learning.”
Q: How many of you have heard of Universal Design for Learning or “UDL”?
Today’s agenda:
What is UDL? (a quick overview) Who benefits from it?
UDL close-up
Craig Spooner
ACCESS Project Coordinator

2. Universal Design for Learning“
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a set of principles and techniques for creating inclusive classroom instruction and accessible course materials.
teaching ”
technology

3. Universal Design (UD) Build in accessibility from the start
Curb cuts in city streets
Ramps and automatic door openers
TV closed captions
Ergonomic kitchen utensils
Everyone benefits from a more flexible, user-friendly environment
Universal Design for Learning traces its roots back to the “universal design” movement of the 1990’s.
The term “universal design” was coined by an architect named Ron Mace (who, incidentally, used a wheelchair).
UD, which applies to architecture and the “built environment,” grew out of a reaction to the huge effort, following the passage of the ADA, to make public buildings and sidewalks wheelchair accessible.”
You can imagine the frustration that designers and architects like Mace must have felt as they made the same modifications over and over: wheelchair ramps, door openers, universal-height drinking fountains, Braille door signs, accessible bathroom stalls. Why?—he must have wondered—Why couldn’t the original designers have planned for these features in the first place?
Three very important insights emerged out of Mace’s work:
Most of the renovations and retrofitting could have been avoided if the original designers had planned for accessibility from the beginning. Mace suggested a design ideal in which diverse needs could be anticipated.
Many people (maybe most) benefit from these “disability accommodations.” People whose hands are filled w/ shopping bags appreciate the option of door openers, kids on skateboards use curb cuts, children visiting the hospital can get a drink of water or look across the counter at the receptionist more easily, etc. Universal Design “proactively builds in features to accommodate the range of human diversity” (McGuire, Scott, & Shaw, 2006, p. 173).
The problem isn’t about deficits in the individual; rather, it’s about barriers in the environment. Tear down the barriers and people with disabilities can function effectively and achieve their potential.
Bridge to next slide: “Not surprisingly, educators have adopted UD as a conceptual and philosophical foundation on which to build a model of teaching and learning that is inclusive, equitable, and guides the creation of accessible course materials” (Schelly, Davies & Spooner, 2011).

4. Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
Inclusive pedagogy
UDL applies to both teaching and technology
…educators thought this was a great model education!
Just as we use UD to create equal access to the built environment, we can use UDL to acknowledge and anticipate student diversity—including different learning styles and, yes, disabilities—to create a more inclusive pedagogy.
And, as I mentioned earlier, UDL applies to both teaching and technology—the learning environment and the materials of instruction.

5. Who are college students today?
Now, I said we’d ask the question, who benefits from UDL?
So, let’s begin by asking, “Who are college students today?”
Well our students today are quite different from college students in the 1950s!

6. They are diverse Ethnicity & Culture Gender Nontraditional
ESL/Native language
Learning/Cognitive Styles
Disabilities
And we see this most strikingly in their diversity.
They are diverse in ethnicity and cultural background, of course, but also in gender, age, language background, learning styles, and disabilities—including students on the autism spectrum.
And it’s the last three that I want to focus on…

7. ESL/Native Language What is your good name, sir? Full name Last name
Nickname or pet name
Craig

8. Learning Styles
From Index of Learning Styles (ILS) by Richard M. Felder and Linda K. Silverman.
The instrument was developed by Richard M. Felder and Barbara A. Soloman of North Carolina State University.

9. Learning Styles Visual Auditory (listening)
Visual-Linguistic (reading and writing)
Visual-Spatial (graphs and pictures)
Auditory (listening)
Kinesthetic (touching and moving)
Others:
ILS
Kolb
Left-Brain, Right-Brain

10. Disabilities Mobility Impairments Blindness/Visual Impairments
Deafness/Hearing Impairments
Learning Disabilities
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD/ADHD)
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Mental Illness
To many of our faculty, the word “disabilities” conjures up an image of a student in a wheelchair, or a blind student using a cane, or a sign language interpreter.
But those of us in the disability field know that students with these types of VISUALLY APPARENT DISABILITIES are by far the minority.
The vast majority are what we call NON-APPARENT disabilities, such as…

11. Disabilities in Higher Education
Nationally, 11.3% of undergraduates report some type of disability1
At Colorado State University2
9%–11% report a disability
Non-apparent disabilities are by far the largest proportion and growing
Even among students who say they have a disability, few seek accommodations
Last point:
One reason for this may be that students want to protect their anonymity now that they’re in college, want to just get on with life and be “normal.”
Whatever their reason for not seeking accommodations, the fact suggests that universally designed teaching techniques, which help us avoid the need for many individual accommodations, are especially important in the college environment.
1National Center for Education Statistics, 2008; U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2009
2Schelly, Davies & Spooner, Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability (Feb. 2011)

12. Very Concrete-Literal

13. Universal Design for Learning: 3 Principles
Instructors represent information and concepts in multiple ways (and in a variety of formats).
Students are given multiple ways to express their comprehension and mastery of a topic.
Students engage with new ideas and information in multiple ways.
Read each principle

14. Representation Summarize at end before advancing to next slide:
Presenting ideas and information in multiple ways and in a variety of formats
Lectures
Group activities
Hands-on exercises
Text + Graphics, Audio, Video
Distribute class notes ahead of time
Usable electronic formats (e.g., Word, PDF, HTML)

15. Alternative Representations*
Lecture: Its strengths and weaknesses
Video/Audio podcasts
Shared note taking
The enormous expressivity of the human voice
*Rose, David H., Harbour, Wendy S., Johnston, Catherine Sam, Daley, Samantha G., & Abarbanell, Linda. (2006). Universal design for learning in postsecondary education: Reflections on principles and their application. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 19(2),

16. A Tale of Two Documents: The Technical Side of UDL
Scanned
OCR and Tags

17. What makes a document Universally Designed?
Searchability
Copy and Paste
Bookmarks or an Interactive Table of Contents
Text to Speech capability
Accessibility
Keyboard access, alternative to images, etc.

18. UDL Tech Tutorials Microsoft Word PowerPoint Adobe PDF HTML E-Text
Styles and Headings
Images
PowerPoint
Adobe PDF
HTML
E-Text

19. Expression Students express their comprehension in multiple ways
The “Three P’s”: Projects, Performances, Presentations
Mini-writing assignments
Portfolios/Journals/Essays
Multimedia (text/graphics/audio/video)

20. Engagement Getting students engaged is the cornerstone of learning!
Engaging students in multiple ways
Express your own enthusiasm!
Challenge students with meaningful, real-world assignments (e.g., service learning)
Give prompt and instructive feedback
Use classroom response systems (i>clickers)
Make yourself available to students during office hours in flexible formats

21. CSU Psychology Undergraduates: What helps you learn?
It helps me learn when the instructor…
presents information in multiple formats
actively engages students in learning
relates key concepts to the larger objectives of the course
begins class with an outline
summarizes key points
highlights key points of instructional videos
I mentioned our research previously. In addition to the quantitative data we’ve been collecting, we also asked thousands of undergraduates, “What can the instructor do to help you learn?”
Read #1, tie to UDL principle
Read #2 and tie to UDL principle
The next four responses all have to do with helping students to understand the context for the information they’re learning.
The student responses correspond closely to the UDL principles
And perhaps more importantly they coincide exactly with the needs of the population we’re discussing today: students on the autism spectrum.

22. CSU Psychology Undergraduates: What engages you?
Strategies that increase engagement
i>clicker questions
Asks questions
Videos
Partner/group discussion and activities
In-class mini writing assignments
Transition considerations – students entering higher ed ….

23. UDL Framework Represent Engage Express To summarize…
UDL is a three-part conceptual framework that can be used to organize many well-established teaching practices.
And it’s a model of inclusive pedagogy that anticipates diversity among learners, including disabilities.

24. References
Burgstahler & Cory (2008). Universal design in higher education: From principles to practice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press. Rose, D., et al. (2006). Universal design for learning in postsecondary education: Reflections on principles and their application. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 19(2), Schelly, Davies & Spooner (2011). Student Perceptions of Faculty Implementation of Universal Design for Learning. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 24(1),

25. Craig Spooner craig.spooner@colostate.edu 970-491-0784
Thank you!
Craig Spooner