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Why? It is the Right Thing to do!
Why is this important for higher education?
UDL provides useful guidelines for developing curricula, selecting materials and creating learning environments for wide variability of learners in higher ed environments, increasing student learning, satisfaction, and retention of all students.
Watch the one minute video below on UDL and Retention.
Universal Design for Learning and Retention: Click to view
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Why? It is the Law!
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Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 ...
The term UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING means a scientifically valid framework for guiding educational practice that:
(A) provides flexibility in the ways information is presented, in the ways students respond or demonstrate knowledge and skills, and in the ways students are engaged; and
(B) reduces barriers in instruction, provides appropriate accommodations, supports, and challenges, and maintains high achievement expectations for all students, including students with disabilities and students who are limited English proficient.
Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age by Rose & Meyer (ASCD, 2002), The Universally Designed Classroom (Rose, Meyer, & Hitchcock, Eds.; Harvard Education Press, 2005), and A Practical Reader in Universal Design for Learning (Rose & Meyer, Eds.; Harvard Education Press, 2006).
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Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); What are a public or private college-university's legal responsibilities to students with disabilities?
Private colleges and universities must provide equal access to postsecondary education for students with disabilities. All public or private schools that receive federal funding are required under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act to make their programs accessible to students with disabilities.
All programs of postsecondary institutions, must be accessible to students with disabilities. The schools can do this in several ways:
- by providing architectural access to buildings, including residential facilities;
- by providing aids and services necessary for effective communication, like sign language interpreters, Braille or electronic formats and assistive listening devices;
- and by modifying policies, practices and procedures, such as testing accommodations and access to school facilities for service animals.
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UDL and Accessibility
“The purpose of education is not to make information accessible, but rather to teach learners how to transform accessible information into usable knowledge.” --Introduction to the UDL Guidelines (CAST, 2012)
Postsecondary institutions are obligated to provide accessible learning materials and technologies for students with disabilities, but UDL is more than simply providing information in accessible ways. Skip Stahl discusses the relationship between UDL and accessibility in the video below.
Accessibility and Universal Design for Learning; Click to View
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IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Disabilities may or may not be visible, and may or may not be disclosed.
- Making courses accessible to the maximum number of individual student potential needs and/or preferences increases the odds of also reaching students with disabilities, known or unknown
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