Universal Design for Instruction
Encyclopedia
Universal Design for Instruction has been defined as a specific approach to teaching that involves the proactive design of instructional materials, strategies, and assessments to meet the diverse learning needs of students with and without disabilities in postsecondary education. Nine principles derived in part from Universal Design
(UD) principles for architecture and product design are used in planning and delivering course content and assessing learning outcomes. By planning in advance for the various learning needs of students, Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) makes course content more accessible to all students and lessens the need for accommodations for specific learners.
Although they have a similar goal, the terms Universal Design of Instruction, Universal Design for Learning
, Universal Instructional Design
, and Universal Design in Education are not synonymous with Universal Design for Instruction, as explained in the "Other Applications of Universal Design in Educational Settings" section of this article.
is a framework first developed by Ronald Mace and his colleagues at North Carolina State University. This concept involves anticipating the physical needs of diverse consumers and designing buildings and other items to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible. By proactively anticipating diversity in users and designing environments and products to be accessible, there is less need to retrofit accommodations since usability by the public has been broadened by removing barriers.
Making a product or environment accessible to people with disabilities often benefits others. For example, sidewalk curb cuts, designed to make sidewalks and streets accessible to those using wheelchairs, are today often used by people on skateboards, parents with baby strollers, and delivery staff with rolling carts. When television displays in noisy areas of airports and restaurants are captioned, they are more accessible to people who are deaf as well as everyone else.http://www.design.ncsu.edu/cud/about_ud/about_ud.htm
The principles of Universal Design are:
Examples of products and environments that reflect the principles of Universal Design are ground level entrances, high contrast signage, and alternate text for images on web pages:
As the result of interviews and surveys with both faculty and students, and an extensive literature review, the UDI Online project team identified several factors that can enhance access to course content for diverse learners. These include explicit expectations, topics that are included in a logical sequence, assignment directions that are straightforward, assessments that are directly linked to course objectives, opportunities for communication and networking, delivering information in multiple formats, that is displayed clearly, and easily navigated.
In turn, these factors lead to the development of three “Access Domains”: Cognitive Access, Communication Access, and Physical Access. The definition for each domain, as well as the corresponding UDI Principles is as follows:
Cognitive Access refers to approaches and elements that assist diverse learners to acquire, comprehend, recall, apply, evaluate, integrate, and express information within a digital learning environment .
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Cognitive Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners in acquiring, comprehending, recalling, applying, evaluating, integrating, and expressing course content in online and technology-blended courses.
1. Equitable Use
2. Flexibility in Use
3. Simple and Intuitive
4. Perceptible Information
5. Tolerance for Error
Physical Access within UDI Online refers to approaches and elements that support the ease of navigation of course web sites, clarity in the display of course content, and the creation and presentation of course information in multiple formats to provide opportunities for diverse learners to acquire and manipulate course content within a digital learning environment.
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Physical Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners in acquiring and manipulating course content in online and technology-blended courses.
6. Low Physical Effort
7. Size and Space for Approach and Use
Communication Access within the UDI Online project refers to approaches and elements that provide multiple opportunities for interaction and dialogue to engage diverse learners within a digital learning environment.
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Communication Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners with interacting and engaging peers and faculty in online and technology blended courses.
8. A Community of Learners
9. Instructional Climate
The UDI Online project web site, www.udi.uconn.edu presents recommendations from faculty and students regarding online and blended learning environments, and additional examples of applying the access domains in digital learning environments.
Beginning in the 1980’s, the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST), a not-for-profit organization, has engaged in efforts “to expand learning opportunities for all individuals, especially those with disabilities, through the research and development of innovative, technology-based educational resources and strategies”. CAST’s approach is based upon Universal Design for Learning (UDL) with a particular focus on students in the K-12 system and the use of technology to support the goal of differentiated instruction.
Another initiative, funded at the University of Guelph in Canada, studied universal instructional design (UID), a model used by faculty who applied the seven principles from North Carolina State University’s Center for Universal Design (CUD). Although this study’s funding ended in 2003, preliminary results showed a significant relationship between the level of UID in a course and students’ sense of self-efficacy.
A third approach is Universal Design of Instruction (UDI). A model developed by the Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology (DO-IT) Center at the University of Washington, Universal Design of Instruction embraces both the principles of Universal Design (UD) and those of Universal Design of Learning (UDL) to operationalize practices that can be employed by educators to maximize the learning of all students. . Checklists based on UD and UDL principles are available for the application of UD to instruction but also to technology, student services, and physical environments.
Finally, Universal Design in Education (UDE) is the phrase proposed by Bowe in 2000 meaning “the preparation of curricula, materials, and environments so that they can be used, appropriately and with ease, by a wide variety of people.” He suggested ways that UDE could be applied across the educational continuum including continuing and adult education. The broad spectrum of UDE practices are also promoted by DO-IT's Center for Universal Design in Education. . While each of these approaches is grounded in the work of the CUD at North Carolina State University, implementation initiatives as well as guiding principles are not uniform.
Universal design
Universal design refers to broad-spectrum ideas meant to produce buildings, products and environments that are inherently accessible to both people without disabilities and people with disabilities....
(UD) principles for architecture and product design are used in planning and delivering course content and assessing learning outcomes. By planning in advance for the various learning needs of students, Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) makes course content more accessible to all students and lessens the need for accommodations for specific learners.
Although they have a similar goal, the terms Universal Design of Instruction, Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience, that guides the development of flexible learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences....
, Universal Instructional Design
Universal Instructional Design
Universal Instructional Design or Universal Design for Instruction is a teaching process that involves considering the potential needs of all learners when designing and delivering instruction through identifying and eliminating unnecessary barriers to teaching and learning while maintaining...
, and Universal Design in Education are not synonymous with Universal Design for Instruction, as explained in the "Other Applications of Universal Design in Educational Settings" section of this article.
Universal Design
Universal DesignUniversal design
Universal design refers to broad-spectrum ideas meant to produce buildings, products and environments that are inherently accessible to both people without disabilities and people with disabilities....
is a framework first developed by Ronald Mace and his colleagues at North Carolina State University. This concept involves anticipating the physical needs of diverse consumers and designing buildings and other items to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible. By proactively anticipating diversity in users and designing environments and products to be accessible, there is less need to retrofit accommodations since usability by the public has been broadened by removing barriers.
Making a product or environment accessible to people with disabilities often benefits others. For example, sidewalk curb cuts, designed to make sidewalks and streets accessible to those using wheelchairs, are today often used by people on skateboards, parents with baby strollers, and delivery staff with rolling carts. When television displays in noisy areas of airports and restaurants are captioned, they are more accessible to people who are deaf as well as everyone else.http://www.design.ncsu.edu/cud/about_ud/about_ud.htm
The principles of Universal Design are:
- Equitable Use
- Flexibility in Use
- Simple and Intuitive Use
- Perceptible Information
- Tolerance for Error
- Low Physical Effort
- Size and Space for Approach and Use
Examples of products and environments that reflect the principles of Universal Design are ground level entrances, high contrast signage, and alternate text for images on web pages:
Universal Design for Instruction
Universal Design for Instruction is based on the application of the principles of UD to the design and delivery of course material and the process of assessment. UDI is an approach to teaching that consists of the proactive design and use of inclusive instructional strategies that benefit a broad range of learners including students with disabilities. This framework can minimize the need for “special” accommodations and retrofitted changes to the learning environment. Universal Design for Instruction operates on the premise that the planning and delivery of instruction, as well as the evaluation of learning, can incorporate inclusive attributes that embrace diversity in learners without compromising academic standards. UDI changes “the focus on how to meet the needs of students with disabilities from a focus on compliance, accommodations, and nondiscrimination to an emphasis on teaching and learning.”Principles of Universal Design for Instruction©
In addition to the seven principles that are adapted from the UD principles of the Center on Universal Design (CUD) at North Carolina State University, two additional principles are included: a community of learners and instructional climate. These additions were based on an extensive literature review on postsecondary instruction and reflect the social nature of learning environments that are critical to address during the course design process. The Center on Postsecondary Education and Disability at the University of Connecticut has provided a definition for each principle as it relates to the instructional environment.| Principle | Definition |
|---|---|
| Equitable use | Instruction is designed to be useful to and accessible by people with diverse abilities. Provide the same means of use for all students; identical whenever possible, equivalent when not. |
| Flexibility in use | Instruction is designed to accommodate a wide range of individual abilities. Provide choice in methods of use. |
| Simple and intuitive | Instruction is designed in a straightforward and predictable manner, regardless of the student's experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level. Eliminate unnecessary complexity |
| Perceptible information | Instruction is designed so that necessary information is communicated effectively to the student, regardless of ambient conditions or the student's sensory abilities. |
| Tolerance for error | Instruction anticipates variation in individual student learning pace and prerequisite skills. |
| Low physical effort | Instruction is designed to minimize nonessential physical effort in order to allow maximum attention to learning. Note: This principle does not apply when physical effort is integral to essential requirements of a course. |
| Size and space for approach and use | Instruction is designed with consideration for appropriate size and space for approach, reach, manipulations, and use regardless of a student's body size, posture, mobility, and communication needs. |
| A community of learners | The instructional environment promotes interaction and communication among students and between students and faculty. |
| Instructional climate | Instruction is designed to be welcoming and inclusive. High expectations are espoused for all students. |
Applying the Principles of UDI to Online and Blended Courses
The UDI Online Project team at the University of Connecticut developed examples of ways the Principles of UDI© can be applied to the design of instructional material for online and/or blended courses:| Principle | Examples |
|---|---|
| Equitable use | Providing students with multiple options to demonstrate mastery of the subject (web design, oral presentations, research papers); using alternate sources to explain complex concepts. |
| Flexibility in use | Using varied instructional methods (mind/concept maps, group activities, outlines) to provide different ways of learning and experiencing knowledge. |
| Simple and intuitive | Providing grading rubrics that clearly lay out expectations for exam performance, papers, or projects; including a syllabus with links to reading materials; adding animated icons to the course website that pop up to remind students of deadlines. |
| Perceptible information | Selecting reading material and other instructional supports, including websites that are accessible via screen readers, text formatting, zoom text. |
| Tolerance for error | Capturing logs of threaded discussions for students to reference over the course of the semester; providing the option of turning in multiple drafts of an assignment in order for the student to demonstrate his/her learning progress; provisioning of “practice” exercises or tests. |
| Low physical effort | Fostering maximum attention to learning by being aware of screen structure and layout of website features (breaking down a construct into multiple pages with headings). |
| Size and space for approach and use | Being aware of diverse communication needs in deciding to incorporate examples and graphics (moderately combine visuals with text). |
| A community of learners | Fostering communication among students in and out of class by structuring study groups, discussion groups, project groups, chat rooms; making a personal connection with students through video or phone (Skype Skype Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system... , Adobe Connect). |
| Instructional climate | Including a statement in the class syllabus affirming the need for class members to respect diversity in order to establish the expectation of tolerance as well as encourage students to discuss any special learning needs; highlighting diverse thinkers who have made significant contributions to the field; providing direct feedback on and share innovative approaches developed by students in the class. |
As the result of interviews and surveys with both faculty and students, and an extensive literature review, the UDI Online project team identified several factors that can enhance access to course content for diverse learners. These include explicit expectations, topics that are included in a logical sequence, assignment directions that are straightforward, assessments that are directly linked to course objectives, opportunities for communication and networking, delivering information in multiple formats, that is displayed clearly, and easily navigated.
In turn, these factors lead to the development of three “Access Domains”: Cognitive Access, Communication Access, and Physical Access. The definition for each domain, as well as the corresponding UDI Principles is as follows:
Cognitive Access refers to approaches and elements that assist diverse learners to acquire, comprehend, recall, apply, evaluate, integrate, and express information within a digital learning environment .
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Cognitive Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners in acquiring, comprehending, recalling, applying, evaluating, integrating, and expressing course content in online and technology-blended courses.
1. Equitable Use
2. Flexibility in Use
3. Simple and Intuitive
4. Perceptible Information
5. Tolerance for Error
Physical Access within UDI Online refers to approaches and elements that support the ease of navigation of course web sites, clarity in the display of course content, and the creation and presentation of course information in multiple formats to provide opportunities for diverse learners to acquire and manipulate course content within a digital learning environment.
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Physical Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners in acquiring and manipulating course content in online and technology-blended courses.
6. Low Physical Effort
7. Size and Space for Approach and Use
Communication Access within the UDI Online project refers to approaches and elements that provide multiple opportunities for interaction and dialogue to engage diverse learners within a digital learning environment.
The following Principles of UDI© were deemed to most directly align with the Communication Access Domain. These Principles support diverse learners with interacting and engaging peers and faculty in online and technology blended courses.
8. A Community of Learners
9. Instructional Climate
The UDI Online project web site, www.udi.uconn.edu presents recommendations from faculty and students regarding online and blended learning environments, and additional examples of applying the access domains in digital learning environments.
Other Applications of Universal Design in Educational Settings
In addition to the field of architecture and product design, the concept of anticipating diversity among users and designing features to make environments and products accessible by a broad range of people has relevance to other fields, most notably, education. Additional initiatives to extend the concept of universal design to education have emerged, and they are described in order to delineate other approaches to accessible instructional environments.Beginning in the 1980’s, the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST), a not-for-profit organization, has engaged in efforts “to expand learning opportunities for all individuals, especially those with disabilities, through the research and development of innovative, technology-based educational resources and strategies”. CAST’s approach is based upon Universal Design for Learning (UDL) with a particular focus on students in the K-12 system and the use of technology to support the goal of differentiated instruction.
Another initiative, funded at the University of Guelph in Canada, studied universal instructional design (UID), a model used by faculty who applied the seven principles from North Carolina State University’s Center for Universal Design (CUD). Although this study’s funding ended in 2003, preliminary results showed a significant relationship between the level of UID in a course and students’ sense of self-efficacy.
A third approach is Universal Design of Instruction (UDI). A model developed by the Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology (DO-IT) Center at the University of Washington, Universal Design of Instruction embraces both the principles of Universal Design (UD) and those of Universal Design of Learning (UDL) to operationalize practices that can be employed by educators to maximize the learning of all students. . Checklists based on UD and UDL principles are available for the application of UD to instruction but also to technology, student services, and physical environments.
Finally, Universal Design in Education (UDE) is the phrase proposed by Bowe in 2000 meaning “the preparation of curricula, materials, and environments so that they can be used, appropriately and with ease, by a wide variety of people.” He suggested ways that UDE could be applied across the educational continuum including continuing and adult education. The broad spectrum of UDE practices are also promoted by DO-IT's Center for Universal Design in Education. . While each of these approaches is grounded in the work of the CUD at North Carolina State University, implementation initiatives as well as guiding principles are not uniform.
Universal Design
- http://www.universaldesign.org/
- http://www.adaptiveenvironments.org/index.php?option=Content&Itemid=3
- http://www.makoa.org/accessable-design.htm
Principles of Universal Design for Instruction:
- http://www.udi.uconn.edu/index.php?q=content/introduction-universal-design-instruction
- http://www.udi.uconn.edu/index.php?q=content/universal-design-instruction-module
- http://ualr.edu/pace/index.php/home/hot-topics/ud/
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY6PhtCLrTg
- http://www.cuyamaca.edu/instsupport/pdf/universal_design_of_instruction.pdf
Application of the Principles of Universal Design for Instruction
- http://www.facultyware.uconn.edu/files/UDI_principles.pdf
- http://udi.uconn.edu/index.php?q=node/16
- http://www.portals.emory.edu/udi_pdf/instruction.pdf
- UDI Online Project. (2010). Universal Design for Instruction Module. Center on Postsecondary Education and Disability, University of Connecticut, Storrs. http://www.udi.uconn.edu/index.php?q=content/universal-design-instructio... .
Universal Design of Instruction
- http://www.washington.edu/doit/Brochures/Academics/instruction.html