More UDL Ideas to Get you Started

At the beginning of the month I wrote about Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This is a concept that is becoming more and more popular, so I decided to pursue it again this week. David Rose from CAST, said the following in the UDL: Principles and Practices videos (which can be viewed at:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGLTJw0GSxk&feature=related) really made an impression:

“When we first began our work we, like most people, were focused on learners who were doing poorly, who looked like they had disabilities. Over time, we began to change our focus because we could see when we were in classrooms that the classrooms were in fact disabling, that they were not designed properly to ensure that every child would succeed.”

The classrooms and way that many topics and subjects are and have been taught forever, are just not working anymore (but did they really ever?). Many teachers have already begun the move to universal design without even knowing it, which is good. However, we need all teachers to purposefully and deliberately start creating curricula that is universal.

So, what can they do? Well, there is a lot that can be done, but here are a few ideas to get you thinking:

-          Use of technology: our children are now born into a technology saturated world – use it! Interactive whiteboards; laptops; videos; Internet resources, games, networking; text-to-speech software, etc.

-          Use of hands-on activities: our children are able to learn a concept easier if they can touch it, feel it, manipulate it – conducting experiments, using manipulatives, acting out a problem/situation, etc.

-          Use of motivational topics: appeal to real-life interests and situations to entice learning more – elementary students: use favorite heroes, TV shows, video games, foods; secondary students: use various activities such as driving, dating, working, hanging out with friends, sports, movies, etc.

-          Use of choice: students are more apt to want to learn if they are given choices in their learning – provide them with a choice to: work in a group or by themselves; present in front of the class or write a paper; draw a picture or make a video, etc.

                                                                                                                                                                           

Growing up I had some awesome teachers that incorporated some of these ideas into their classes and I learned a lot and wanted to learn more. Then, I had the teachers that just lectured the whole time and I counted the minutes until the bell rang. We’ve all had these experiences. Think about your favorite teachers and then think about some of the methods they used.

UDL is about making the curriculum interesting, challenging to all learners whether they have a learning disability, are English-language learners, or are gifted. What ideas do you have to make curriculum accessible to all learners?