scholarly journals Like fire to water: building bridging collaborations between Disability service providers and course instructors to create user friendly and resource efficient UDL implementation material

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederic Fovet ◽  
Heather Mole ◽  
Tynan Jarrett ◽  
David Syncox
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Disability Service ◽  
Support Unit ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Disability Service Providers ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
Initial Hypothesis ◽  
User Friendly

This study presents a post-secondary campus` experience with systematic and global promotion of Universal Design for Learning. It analyzes data collected over a 24 months period, relating to course instructors’ responses to the framework, through the lens of the initial hypothesis that successes and failures in adoption might be explained by the existence of variables that act as facilitators or stressors in the eyes of the participants. It is argued that identifying these variables allows campuses to map winning conditions for the rapid adoption of UDL by course instructors, irrespective of institutional context and resources. Importantly the study highlights that the full identification of these factors requires the involvement and collaboration of not simply the disability service provider, but also the Teaching and Learning support unit and the equity and diversity office. The study argues that such a collaboration model is transferable to other institutions.

scholarly journals Developing an Ecological Approach to the Strategic Implementation of UDL in Higher Education

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Frederic Fovet
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Ecological Theory ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Disability Service Providers ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
Institutional Adoption

This paper argues that, as Canadian Higher Education campuses embark on large scale Universal Design for Learning (UDL) implementation, it is essential for them to take the time to strategically consider inherent institutional challenges before pushing ahead. As a result, it is argued that ecological theory will represent a unique and powerful lens in this process of implementation. The first section of the paper examines two inherent dangers being perpetuated in current UDL drives on the vast majority of Canadian campuses that have embarked on this adventure: (i) overreliance on disability service providers, and (ii) a conceptualization of UDL work in silos. The second half of the paper focuses on solutions, and on the idea of developing a strategic approach to UDL integration framed around ecological theory. The paper draws on an analysis of phenomenological data emerging from the author’s own lived experience as a consultant responding regularly to the needs of post-secondary campuses with regards to the institutional adoption of UDL.

Belief without evidence? A policy research note on Universal Design for Learning

2020 ◽  
pp. 147821032094020
Author(s):  
Michael PA Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Universal Design ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
Research Note ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Implementation Plans

Developed first in the late 1990s by the Centre for Applied Special Technology, the pedagogical framework known as “Universal Design for Learning” (UDL) has drawn increasing investment from K-12 and post-secondary institutions. The promoters of UDL often frame the approach as being “based in neuroscience,” and further as an “evidence-based approach” to instructional design in teaching and learning. While the rhetoric is promising, no rigorous published research has demonstrated any improvement in an education intervention designed with UDL principles in mind. Furthermore, the community of practice around UDL appears to be hostile to questions around the rigor of analysis used to promote UDL interventions. Studies of UDL approaches do not follow best practices in terms of research design, and often solicit anecdotes rather than testing the effectiveness of the approach. The purpose of this policy research note is to survey the state of the art in researching UDL and to clarify the origin of the pedagogical theory. Because the effectiveness of this theory has not been proven, there are no grounds for UDL implementation plans to be framed as “evidence-based” decisions. Further, the reluctance of UDL advocates to rigorously study the effectiveness of their intervention raises important questions about their confidence in the theory. For these reasons, the only evidence-based conclusion that can be made about UDL is that further study is required, as its core claims remain unproven. Institutions of any educational level should proceed with caution before devoting significant resources to implementation of UDL.

scholarly journals Support to address barriers to learning for learners who are deaf

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Mapepa ◽  
Meahabo D. Magano
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Barriers To Learning ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Special Schools ◽  
Design For Learning

Background: There is great importance in support services for successfully addressing the barriers to learning optimally or learners who are deaf. The study, though conducted in South Africa, has national and international appeal.Objectives: The aim of the study was to identify educator reflections on support services needed for them to address barriers to learning of learners who are deaf.Method: The study used a qualitative design for collecting data in natural settings. A sample size of 11 educators of learners who are deaf was purposively selected from two provinces of South Africa. The study used an open ended individual interview questionnaire.Results: Data was analysed using qualitative content analysis considering the context of the schools in which the study was carried out. Results showed that there was: limited curriculum support in special schools; lack of support and inadequate teaching and learning materials; overcrowding in one school and; limited support of multidisciplinary professionals in most schools.Conclusion: The study provided a framework for support services important for research, policy and practice. Of significance was the relevance of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) theoretical framework in implementing support services programmes in schools.

scholarly journals Is Safety in the Eye of the Beholder? Safeguards in Research With Adults With Intellectual Disability

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 424-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine E. McDonald ◽  
Nicole E. Conroy ◽  
Carolyn I. Kim ◽  
Emily J. LoBraico ◽  
Ellis M. Prather ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Institutional Review Board ◽  
Human Subjects Research ◽  
Disability Service ◽  
Disability Service Providers ◽  
Institutional Review

Human subjects research has a core commitment to participant well-being. This obligation is accentuated for once exploited populations such as adults with intellectual disability. Yet we know little about the public’s views on appropriate safeguards for this population. We surveyed adults with intellectual disability, family members and friends, disability service providers, researchers, and Institutional Review Board (IRB) members to compare views on safeguards. We found many points of convergence of views, particularly for decision-making and participation. One trend is that adults with intellectual disability perceive greater safety in being engaged directly in recruitment, and recruitment by specific individuals. Researchers and IRB members need to consider community views to facilitate the safe and respectful inclusion of adults with intellectual disability.

"No-man's-land" between occupational health and safety legislation and the disability service sector

2008 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Gaye Cameron
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Health ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Occupational Health And Safety ◽  
Disability Service ◽  
Disability Service Providers ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
The People ◽  
No Man's Land

The aim of this paper is to draw attention to a significant and growing tension that exists between the application of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) legislation and the obligations of disability service providers under disability legislation and funding agreements with governments. Our purpose in highlighting this tension is to seek a body of knowledge to inform the courts and judicators of the complexities of implementing OHS and disability service work, and to gain a sound understanding of the synergies already in existence with OHS practices and the disability sector. We also need to keep in mind that we don?t compromise the rights of people with disabilities, nor the health and safety of the people who work with them.

scholarly journals Post Secondary educators can increase educational reach with Universal Design for Learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-36
Author(s):  
Kimberly Coy
Keyword(s):  
Universal Design ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Environment Design ◽  
Barriers To Learning ◽  
Secondary Educators ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
College And University ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
Learning Environment Design

Meeting the needs of a variety of learners in college and university settings is of vital importance. By designing courses infused with Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, guidelines and checkpoints; professors and instructors create environments targeted toward meeting the educational needs of a wider variety of students. UDL works most effectively at the design stage. This paper aims to support learning environment design by presenting ten specific strategies for infusing UDL within post-secondary courses at the university level. These strategies will include: identifying barriers to learning, alternatives for participating during class time, effective alternative assessments based on construct relevance and UDL meta cognitive goals and transparency.

scholarly journals A System-Wide Approach to Universal Design for Learning Implementation

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-47
Author(s):  
Joni L Degner
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Universal Design ◽  
Universal Design For Learning ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Value System ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Design For Learning ◽  
High Standards ◽  
Every Student Succeeds Act

Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an instructional framework based in neuroscience, optimizes teaching and learning by supporting learners through three overarching principles: Multiple Means of Engagement, Multiple Means Representation, and Multiple Means of Action and Expression (?About universal?). These principles and the subsequent framework that grew out of the work of CAST co-founders and framework co-creators Dr. David Rose and Anne Meyers has become greater than the sum of its parts. Practitioners who have even dabbled in Universal Design for Learning have likely come to the understanding that UDL is a student-centered value system of flexibility, accessibility, and high standards for all students; indeed, the goal of Universal Design for Learning is to create learning environments where students grow to be experts in their own learning. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) defines and endorses Universal Design for Learning as the framework for designing learning experiences that support the success of all learners

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