When you're planning your lessons, it's important to think about how you can make them accessible and engaging for all learners. The UDL framework can be a helpful tool for doing this.
By following these steps, you can make sure that your lessons are designed to meet the needs of all learners.
One of the first steps in planning a UDL lesson is to create goals and objectives that are free from barriers. This means making sure that they are clear, achievable, and relevant to all learners.
To do this, you'll need to think about what you want them to learn, and how you can make sure that the goals are accessible to all. For example, if you're teaching a history lesson, you might want to create a goal that is relevant to all learners, such as "To understand the causes of the First World War."
Once you've identified the goals of the lesson, it's time to think about what barriers might prevent the learner from achieving them. This includes anything that could make it difficult for them to engage with the material, or to express what they have learned.
Barriers can show up in many ways including, but not limited to:
Design solutions to these barriers through both choice and scaffolding. Download the practical classroom example of the thinking and design process teachers must go through in order to universally design for their learners.
The math classroom can be a daunting place for any learner. With the UDL framework, you can find proactive ways to design your instruction to overcome any barriers in the learning environment and make math even more accessible to all learners.
When you're planning your lesson, it's important to use a variety of methods and materials. This will ensure that all learners are able to engage with the material in a way that suits them best. Some ideas for doing this include:
Another important aspect of UDL is encouraging everyone to take an active role in their own learning. This means giving them the opportunity to direct their own learning, and to make choices about how they want to engage with the material.
There are many ways that you can encourage student agency and help create self-directed learners. Some ideas include:
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) has an enormous potential to positively impact the learning experience of all learners. Learn more about building the case for applying universal design for learning at your institution.
Take a look at the UDL guidelines, developed by CAST and how they were conceived.
Explore how providing access to technology can help all learners to succeed.