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Examples of Representation

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CAST: Strategies for Action and Expression

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CAST: Strategies for Action and Expression

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Understood.org

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Accommodations for Kids Who Learn and Think Differently

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Classroom accommodations can help students who learn and think differently thrive in school. Learn about classroom accommodations for ADHD, dyslexia, and more.

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When I am presenting on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an education framework routed in offering options to students to help them take control of their own education, teachers often tell me they have been doing it already for years. I ask them to explain.

What follows is often a description of Differentiated Instruction (DI). Like UDL, DI is also an education framework based on providing options to students. However, there are some critical differences that differentiate (pardon the pun!) the two frameworks from one another.

The Dinner Party Analogy

I like to explain the differences by asking teachers think about hosting a dinner party. Let's say you have invited over thirty guests. Several of these guests have food allergies, another few are gluten-free, some are vegetarian or lactose intolerant, and your brother is exclusively Paleo. You want to be the perfect host, and you want to accommodate everyone.

Scenario 1: You decide to make individual meals for each guest so that each of them has the perfect dish. That is a lot of juggling to do. In the end, you are exhausted from all of the cooking, made a few mistakes because it is nearly impossible to get everyone's individual meal perfect, and didn't enjoy yourself. At the same time, you are frustrated that some of your guests preferred other's meals when you had made a special dish JUST FOR THEM.

What I just described is the dinner party equivalent of DI. DI is presenting options, but those options are directed by the teacher. For example, you may take one group of students aside and ask them to read an extra piece of literature because you can tell they are more advanced than their peers. You ask another student to draw a picture instead of writing an essay since you know writing is challenging for him. You are presenting options, but those options are governed by you and it's possible you haven't chosen the right options for the right students. You are burnt out from trying to create so many individualized lessons.

Scenario 2: Let's go back to the dinner party. Rather than preparing thirty individual meals, why not put out a buffet? Include lots of variety, but let the guests choose what is best for them, what they believe will work with their individual diets, and satisfy them. You don't witness guests peering at other's dishes wishing they had been made the same thing. You are relaxed and engaged. You have saved your energy for interacting with your guests, instead of wasting it preparing imperfect options.

UDL offers students a "buffet" of options. The options are offered by the teacher but they aren't individualized for specific students. Through the UDL framework, students are intended to become self-directed learners and choose the options that work best for them, not the other way around. With UDL, students learn to take responsibility for their learning. They are learn the "why" of learning as we turn on the affective network of the brain by providing multiple means of engagement. They learn the "what" of learning as we ignite the recognition network of the brain by providing multiple means of representation. And they learn the "how" of learning as we turn on the strategic network of the brain through multiple means of action & expression.

If you are feeling exhausted by creating individualized learning plans for each of your students through the DI framework, you are not alone. UDL can help you provide options but allow you to maintain your creativity and energy while developing a classroom full of curious, self-directed learners. It isn't a framework you can implement overnight, but once you see it working its magic in your classroom, you will become just as hooked as I am.

To learn more about the UDL framework, and read up on concrete examples of how you can implement it in your classroom, feel free to pick up a copy of my book, UDL Now!

UDL vs DI: The Dinner Party Analogy

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UDL vs DI: The Dinner Party Analogy - Novak Educational Consulting

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When I am presenting on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an education framework routed in offering options to students to help them take control of their own education, teachers often tell me they have been doing it already for years. I ask them to explain. What follows is often a description of Differentiated Instruction (DI).

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The National Center on Universal Design for Learning at CAST. Together we can change the world.

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Understood.org

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching that aims to give all students equal opportunities to succeed, no matter how they learn. While some teachers in traditional schools may use UDL principles and practices on their own, traditional and UDL approaches to education are very different.

This chart, created with the help of the CAST, highlights some of the differences between traditional classrooms and UDL classrooms. CAST, an Understood founding partner, developed the UDL framework.

In the traditional classroom

In the UDL classroom

Teaching focuses on what is taught.

The primary focus is on teaching the subject matter students need to learn. Lessons are designed and taught with a "typical" student in mind.

That often means the teacher will present the material in one way for the entire class.

A lesson on the Civil War, for instance, might involve the teacher lecturing the class and writing facts and dates on the board.

Teaching focuses on both what is taught and how.

The primary focus is on finding ways to teach the material to the many types of learners in a classroom. Teachers plan lessons to address a wide range of needs and strengths. There's no "typical" student.

The teacher will present the material in a variety of ways. A lesson on the Civil War might include a traditional lecture. But there might also be a video for students to watch or an online class forum for discussion. There might even be a board game that students play to understand the history of the war.

Accommodations are for specific students.

Accommodations are only for students with an IEP or a 504 plan, the goal being to help these students learn the same material as their classmates.

For instance, a student with accommodations listed in an IEP or 504 plan might get an alternate format for a book, like an audiobook. But alternate formats aren't available to the whole class.

Accommodations are for all students.

The accommodations some kids might get in their IEPs and 504 plans are available to all students. The idea behind this is that all kids may benefit from multiple formats. Some say, too, that providing accommodations for all can reduce stigma students may feel about using accommodations.

For instance, if a lesson relies on a book, the book will be available to the entire class in multiple forms. That includes text-to-speech, Braille, digital text and large print.

The teacher decides how the material is taught.

The teacher teaches in one way for the whole class, and all students are expected to learn in that way.

The teacher works with the student to decide how the student will learn the material.

Teachers and students work together to set individual learning goals. Each student gets to make choices about how to accomplish personal goals. The aim to is to have the student understand how she learns and become an "expert learner."

The classroom has a fixed setup.

It looks like a traditional classroom-desks lined up in rows or grouped in pods. The teacher stands in front and teaches to the whole class at once.

The classroom has a flexible setup.

The room is laid out with different spaces for different kinds of work-quiet, individual work, small and large group work, and group instruction. Teaching is flexible, depending on the lesson and student needs. The teacher moves around from space to space, helping students as they work.

There's one way for a student to complete an assignment.

There's usually only one way for a student to show what he knows.

For instance, a book report might be assigned only as a written essay.

There are multiple ways to complete an assignment.

There are many options for students to show what they know, because students have different strengths in how they express themselves.

For example, students can choose the format for their book report, such as a video, slideshow presentation or essay.

Grades are used to measure performance.

Students get periodic feedback on how they're doing through tests, quizzes, projects and assignments. But grades typically aren't used as part of an ongoing discussion about goals and learning.

Grades are used to reinforce goals.

Students get continuous feedback on how they're doing. They're encouraged to reflect on their learning and whether they met lesson goals. Grades feed into that discussion.

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The Difference Between Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Traditional Education

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching that aims to give all students equal opportunities to succeed, no matter how they learn. While some teachers in traditional schools may use UDL principles and practices on their own, traditional and UDL approaches to education are very different.

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Explore the guidelines online

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The UDL Guidelines are a tool used in the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. Learn more about the Universal Design for Learning framework from CAST. The UDL Guidelines can be used by educators, curriculum developers, researchers, parents, and anyone else who wants to implement the UDL framework in a learning environment. These guidelines offer a set of concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities.

Coming soon! UDL Guidelines 3.0

The UDL Guidelines are a living, dynamic tool that is continuously developed based on new research and feedback from practitioners. In 2020, CAST launched our most recent effort to update the UDL Guidelines, with a specific focus on equity. There has been a strong call from the field-both practitioners and researchers alike-to more fully develop the Guidelines to address critical barriers rooted in biases and systems of oppression. The current update aims to respond to this call and to work toward fulfilling the promise of the Guidelines as a tool to guide the design of learning environments that more fully honor and value every learner.

Since our launch in 2020, we have been committed to a community-driven, inclusive, and transparent updating process. As part of this effort, we are:

Collaborating with an Advisory Board, a UDL Guidelines Collaborative, and a Young Adult Advisory Board to guide our work

Conducting focus groups with a diversity of participants to learn from their perspectives, lived experiences, and feedback

Reviewing the research on the UDL Guidelines research pages to understand the balance of different research fields, methodological approaches, epistemological approaches, and author positionalities

Conducting literature reviews of equity-oriented research that connect to and extend the Guidelines, such as disability studies and critical pedagogy studies

We are excited to share this next iteration of the UDL Guidelines in 2024. If you are interested in receiving our UDL Guidelines 3.0 newsletter to stay updated on our progress and to share your ideas and perspectives, please complete this brief form.

Review the Summary

Explore the Full Draft

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The UDL Guidelines are a tool used in the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. Learn more about the Universal Design for Learning framework from CAST.

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This is my first time using Padlet. Thanks for sharing, Jen.

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Created by Jessi Lalonde

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Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

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Insert your questions, reactions, thoughts and/or wonderings below

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Insert your questions, reactions, thoughts and/or wonderings below

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Implementation of modifications on IEPs is consistently a challenge. We need to take time as a staff to really understand the value/purpose in IEPs, rather than just something that needs to get done. Teacher buy-in is what we need and support for how to do it. 

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Implementation of modifications on IEPs is consistently a challenge. We need to take time as a staff to really understand the value/purpose in IEPs, rather than just something that needs to get done. Teacher buy-in is what we need and support for how to do it. 

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Feeling like we need to move to the idea of Kindergarten program where focus is where are students at, where are they going...rather than grade 7/8 curriculum that needs to be modified since many of the students in class are not achieving curriculum goals.  IEP is really like the communication of learning reporting for JK/SK.  Disconnect between what we see in classrooms and curriculum documents. 

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Feeling like we need to move to the idea of Kindergarten program where focus is where are students at, where are they going...rather than grade 7/8 curriculum that needs to be modified since many of the students in class are not achieving curriculum goals.  IEP is really like the communication of learning reporting for JK/SK.  Disconnect between what we see in classrooms and curriculum documents. 

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I would still benefit from hearing how other SSTs collaborate with Teachers around writing/revising IEPs. When do you meet? How do you discuss the lack of implementation happening in the classroom? I would really to like to hear the Teacher responses to our inquiry questions... It might help find common ground. My "take away" is knowing that other SSTs are experiencing the same challenges that I am.

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I think we should form a committee of SSTs and Ed Services Staff to develop LDSB guidelines for the development of IEPs.

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Teachers are to use "professional judgement" regarding assessments - what is the legal requirement on an IEP regarding assessments? Must they have an academic assessment?

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I am reminded again of what an all-encompassing job it is to choose what to modify, how to modify and when to modify curriculum. I feel teachers could do a better job with more support (EA) to implement these modifications.

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Why is Spec Ed not a priority for school-based professional development? Spec Ed is rarely on the agenda for PA Days, yet ALL staff are working with students who require differentiated needs.

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I think that it would be helpful for Teachers to feel more connected to their IEPs. So often they seem to be seen as something that needs to get done (checked off the to do list) rather than as a useful tool that can be used to support their students.

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I think that it would be helpful for Teachers to feel more connected to their IEPs. So often they seem to be seen as something that needs to get done (checked off the to do list) rather than as a useful tool that can be used to support their students.

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Video

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Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education

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My wondering/take away is thinking about how I will engage in conversations about Modifications (how, when, grade, etc.) in the fall when new IEPs are being written by new teachers in Sept.

This Padlet is great! Thank you!

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Collaboration in creating, revising and revisiting IEPs is crucial to them being implemented as they should be. Yet so many educators view them as another thing to do rather than a useful document to help them in their programming. More education on writing a good IEP and how successful collaboration can make a difference would be great (with classroom teacher and not just SSTs and administrators).

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I wonder if part of the answer to writing really effective IEPs lies in really knowing our curriculum- the 'why' behind specific expectations (big ideas/enduring understanding). We need to continue to build our understanding, so that we really know what we want students to know and be able to do. This in turn will help us be better able to notice and name students' strengths and needs, and determine appropriate modifications/accommodations.

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I wonder if part of the answer to writing really effective IEPs lies in really knowing our curriculum- the 'why' behind specific expectations (big ideas/enduring understanding). We need to continue to build our understanding, so that we really know what we want students to know and be able to do. This in turn will help us be better able to notice and name students' strengths and needs, and determine appropriate modifications/accommodations.