Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning
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Have you ever wondered how to make your instruction more accessible and effective for every learner you support? Whether you’re working one-on-one with an adult learner or guiding a full classroom, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) offers a flexible framework to meet diverse needs without adding complexity.
This month we are going to explore practical strategies that can help you remove barriers, increase engagement, and empower learners to show what they know in ways that work for them.
To get started, read this blog, A Quick Guide to Universal Design for Learning, and watch these videos, What is UDL? Universal Design for Learning Explained and Universal Design for Learning: UDL to get started learning about UDL. The Cast UDL Guidelines (see below) are also a great place to start learning about designing learning experiences that meet the needs of all learners.
Dig deeper with the resources below and at our discussion at the end of the month!
Tutor Tip
The great thing about designing universally is that you are making a plan to reach all students within the context of your lesson ahead of time. In adult education and literacy, we don’t always know who will be in attendance if we have a small group or class. In one-to-one tutoring, we don’t always know (although we learn as long as we keep asking and working with a student) what our student needs.
UDL started in architecture because architects had to make sure, for example, that a building was accessible to everyone, that the environment was appealing to everyone, that the space incorporated specific characteristics that made it easy to use—for everyone! (If you’d like to learn more about the origins of UDL, listen to this podcast.) The same framework works in education.
Here are some tips as you are planning. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
Start with a Clear Goal
Goals keep instruction focused on what learners should achieve, not just how they achieve it. It is important to
state the goal at the start of the lesson; ask learners how this goal connects to their life, work, or future plans; and offer different ways to reach the goal.
Engage Learners
Motivation is key to learning persistence. You can design options for welcoming interests and identities, sustaining effort and persistence, and utilizing emotional capacity. Try to offer choice in reading materials, topics, or writing prompts; use real-life tasks that are collaborative and community-oriented; build awareness with reflection prompts; and celebrate small wins and progress to build confidence.
Represent Information in Multiple Ways
Learners process information differently, and offering multiple representations builds comprehension. You can do this by designing options for perception, language and symbols, and in building knowledge. For example, you might pair text with visuals, charts, or realia; provide audio (read-alouds, recordings) when possible; have students investigate different perspectives in research; use native language supports when possible; and pre-teach key vocabulary using plain language.
Offer Multiple Means of Action & Expression
Learners need options to demonstrate their understanding. You can design options for interaction, expression and communication, and strategy development. You might allow verbal responses, drawings, or recorded answers; have options for final project modes; give access to assistive technologies; use sentence starters or graphic organizers; and encourage learners to choose the format that works best for them.
Reflect & Adjust
Reflection supports continuous improvement—for tutors and learners. Ask learners what helped them most during a session, adjust instruction to remove barriers, and keep notes on what strategies worked for future sessions.
Whether or not you think or know that your student may have a learning disability or difference, when you take the time before teaching or tutoring to consider not only the content but also the how and why pieces, then you will already be in a mindset of inclusivity. And your student will know it!
Continue Learning
Self-Reflection & Introduction
Self-Reflection & Introduction
In UDL, a clear and meaningful goal is the foundation for inclusive instruction. A well-defined goal helps educators stay focused on what students need to learn—while offering flexibility in how learners access content, engage with it, and show what they know.
Why is a learning goal important to your learners, and how does it connect to their real-life needs, interests or future?
Read this blog, Universal Design for Learning: Start with the Goal
Watch this video, Setting Goals and Lesson Planning, to understand goal setting more clearly
Consider these questions:
How do you currently foster motivation and interest in your learners, and what could you change or add to better connect literacy activities to their lives?
In what ways do you present reading or writing content to support different learning needs, and how could you diversify your approach to increase comprehension for all learners?
How do your learners currently show what they know, and how might you expand the options so they can express their literacy skills in ways that reflect their strengths?
Continued Learning & Support
Continued Learning & Support
What exactly do engagement, representation, and action and expression mean? Learn more here.
Engagement means sparking learners’ interest and sustaining their motivation by connecting reading and writing tasks to their lives, goals, and values.
Representation means presenting information in multiple ways so learners can access and make sense of content.
Action and Expression allows learners to demonstrate their understanding in varied ways.
Digging Deeper
Digging Deeper
To learn more or dig deeper into UDL, spend some time with the following:
Read the following academic articles:
Continue to explore the CAST site
Explore the TIES Center site, which has a plethora of resources, including strategies and lesson planning templates
Try this: incorporate UDL in a lesson plan with this UDL Choice Board
Attend one of the upcoming Propel trainings on UDL
Share Your Thoughts
💬Join the discussion on October 30 from 12-1 pm! Bring your ideas and questions about this topic as well as any tutoring-related concerns.
💬Join the discussion on October 30 from 12-1 pm! Bring your ideas and questions about this topic as well as any tutoring-related concerns.
📝Share your experience, questions, and suggestions using this form. Have you tried implementing any of the above principles or strategies? How did it go? Are you interested in trying them but need a little support?
Would you like to learn about another topic? Explore the Instructional Learning Library here or suggest a topic on the above form.
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