{"id":23651,"date":"2023-01-31T13:03:22","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T01:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kamiapp.com\/?p=23651"},"modified":"2023-01-31T13:51:52","modified_gmt":"2023-01-31T01:51:52","slug":"examples-of-udl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.kamiapp.com\/blog\/examples-of-udl\/","title":{"rendered":"Examples of UDL"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching aimed at meeting the needs of every student in a classroom. If you haven\u2019t already, be sure to check out our main blog on \u201cWhat is UDL?\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A UDL-based approach to designing your learning environment has proven benefits for all your learners; not just those that may have disabilities or learning difficulties. Sounds like a great system, right? But, Improving our students\u2019 learning experiences doesn\u2019t happen overnight.
Implementing UDL strategies takes careful planning by teachers. Here are just a few examples of universal design and how they can work in a classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use digital materials when possible<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This one is easy. If you use Kami, you\u2019re winning already!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With digital content, you can increase the font size, easily look up definitions, use text-to-speech to read text aloud, and link out to more detailed information on almost any topic imaginable.  This is particularly useful for students needing dyslexia-friendly reading tools, or translation. These adaptive tools are the perfect way to provide multiple means of engagement to your learners, without the need for you to write each lesson plan in a variety of formats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Posted lesson goals<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Having goals helps students know what they\u2019re working to achieve. That\u2019s why goals are always made apparent in a UDL classroom. Students should be able to regularly view the lesson goal, to remind them why<\/em> they\u2019re working on a particular project.
One example of this is posting goals for specific lessons in the classroom. Students might also write down or insert lesson goals in their notebooks. The teacher refers to lesson goals during the lesson itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Assignment options<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

In a traditional classroom, there may be only one way for a student to complete an assignment. This might be an essay or a worksheet. With UDL, there are multiple options. For instance, students may be able to create a podcast or a video to show what they know. They may even be allowed to draw a comic strip. There are tons of possibilities for completing assignments, as long as students meet the lesson goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flexible workspaces<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

UDL promotes flexibility in the learning environment. That\u2019s why in a UDL classroom, there are flexible workspaces for students. This includes spaces for quiet individual work, small and large group work, and group instruction. If students need to tune out noise, they can choose to wear earbuds or headphones during independent work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regular feedback<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

With UDL, students get feedback \u2014 often every day \u2014 on how they\u2019re doing. At the end of a lesson, teachers may talk with individual students about lesson goals. Students are encouraged to reflect on the choices they made in class and whether they met the goals. If they didn\u2019t meet the goals, they\u2019re encouraged to think about what might have helped them do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital and audio text<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

UDL recognizes that if students can\u2019t access information, they can\u2019t learn it. So in a UDL classroom, materials are accessible to all types of learners. Students have many options for reading, including print, digital, text-to-speech, and audiobooks. For digital text, there are also options for text enlargement, along with choices for screen color and contrast. Videos have captions, and there are transcripts for audio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Create text-based resources so that learners can vary the size of the text.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Provide text or spoken equivalents of images, graphics, videos, or animation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Use visual (read: non-language-based) resources to clarify vocabulary terms.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Use a variety of familiar contexts to ground new concepts, or ask learners to situate key ideas in their own contexts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Highlight to learners the connections between any information provided as a text and the accompanying representation (e.g. image, video, diagram).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Low and No-Tech options do exist<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Even though we\u2019ve been talking about the importance of digital content, and Kami is an EdTech platform, it\u2019s important to know that technology is not<\/strong> required to implement UDL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sure, it can help, but if you\u2019re in a classroom with little to no technology, that doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t implement UDL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    UDL is all about removing barriers. As mentioned, one way to do this is by providing a range of options when presenting content or asking students to demonstrate their knowledge. Instead of using technology, you can still offer multiple means of representation with things like graphic organizers and handheld whiteboards that students can use as response cards. The goal is just to make sure that all students have a way to participate and learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Some additional points to help you bring a Universal Design for Learning into your classroom.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n