Education Week - February 24, 2016 - 24

'Universal Design' Idea
Finds a Niche in ESSA
how to design their classrooms, how
to design their day. You could go into
sentations, drawings, or music.
a room and think, 'Ah, this looks difWithin the Every Student Suc- ferent,' " Smith said.
ceeds Act, the latest update of the
ESEA, Congress said that states Drawing on Architecture
should adhere to principles of universal design for learning as they deUniversal design for learning invelop student assessments. The law tentionally harks back to the archialso calls for states to create plans tectural concept of universal design,
for comprehensive literacy instruc- which proposes that products and
tion and to incorporate universal de- the built environment should be
accessible to the largest number of
people, without the need for adaptation. Universally designed products
The New Federal K-12 Law
and architecture include items such
sign for learning principles in those as automatic doors that are wide
plans.
enough to accommodate wheelchairs,
ESSA also says that federal money lamps that can be operated without
can be used for technology that sup- switches, or automatic teller maports the strategy.
chines that provide audio as well as
Universal design for learning is for visual cues.
Students Cindy Chen,
about the learners in their classroom,
any student. But it is seen as particUDL operates under the same phi- left, and Rendy Zhong
all needing different pathways for
ularly important for students with losophy that lessons should be cre- practice reading in a
learning."
disabilities, English-language learn- ated so that they can reach the most classroom at Southside
The Cecil County district uses the
ers, and others who might struggle children.
strategy to give teachers a "perforElementary School, in
with more traditional methods of
Often, teachers may be using ele- Columbus, Ind. The school
mance task" framework that offers
teaching and testing. It also makes ments of universal design for learn- is part of a district that
students several different ways that
an appearance in the Higher Educa- ing without recognizing it, said Mi- practices universal design
they can demonstrate that they
tion Act of 2008, which defines the chael Hodnicki, the instructional for learning, an instructional
grasp a particular topic.
term and provides guidelines for how coordinator for secondary language framework that seeks to open
"Teachers are excited about those
its principles can be incorporated arts for the Cecil County, Md., school up multiple routes to learning.
kinds of things because they are
into teacher training.
district. But central office support is It can touch on everything
different. They're not reading 100
essential to making it a systematic from teaching and
essays," Hodnicki said. "One thing
practice,
he
said.
I have heard is that submission of
assessment
strategies
to
Wide Application
Cecil County, a district of 16,000 classroom design and the
assignments has increased as an
The recognition of the approach students northeast of Baltimore, was outline of the school day.
result. Some of this is going to be a
in the new law is spotty, said Nancy one of four school districts around
novelty, but we know that we can't
Reder, the co-chairwoman of the Na- the country that participated in a
assess a kid ... if they're not submittional UDL Task Force, a coalition Gates Foundation-funded project
ting their demonstration of understanding."
of some 50 organizations that are funded to support UDL.
For Cecil County, that project
Plus, teachers are learning more
promoting more widespread adoption of universal design for learning came around the time that the disabout their students this way, Hodmethods.
trict was embarking on a curriculum
nicki said. "They get to see where
But the group will take it, she said. rewrite.
students would prefer to put their
"What we had hoped for is that
"It enhanced our philosophy on how
energy."
UDL would be something that could we address learning variability," HodThe Bartholomew Consolidated
be mentioned, not just on the as- nicki said. "It gave us a mechanism
school system in Indiana is another
sessment portion [of the law], but on and a set collection of principles and
district that participated in the grant
things you can do with the money. tenets of how teachers need to think
to enhance UDL practices. George
We didn't get that," she said.
But the organization sees the mentions as an acknowledgment of how
important it is to embrace strategies
to reach all learners, said Reder, who
is also the deputy executive director
Universal design for learning, or UDL, is an instructional framework that supports flexible
of the National Association of State
ways for educators to teach lessons, as well as multiple ways for students to demonstrate
Directors of Special Education.
what they know. The goal: to reach all learners, including students with disabilities and
Sean J. Smith, a professor of speEnglish-language learners. And it's making big inroads in regular education classrooms as
cial education at the University of
Kansas and an expert in technolwell. Some examples:
ogy and universal design for learning, also supports the attention if it
LESSON COMPONENTS
l Instructional videos accompanied by scripts and closed-captioning for students who need those supports.
leads to a greater understanding of
the practice. Though UDL has been
l Illustrations, simulations, images, or interactive graphics to support or replace information normally provided by
a defined practice since the 1990s,
plain text.
Smith says that many people still
l Outlines and graphic organizers to help students organize key ideas and relationships.
don't have a deep understanding of
l Key information presented in a student's primary language, such as Spanish or
the approach and how it can work in
American Sign Language.
their classrooms.
What's important for educators
WHAT STUDENTS CAN DO
to understand, Smith said, is that
l Develop their own goals for learning, broken down with teacher support into
UDL is not a piece of technology,
short-term objectives.
even though technology can support
l Complete assignments that are alternatives to traditional essays and tests,
the practice. Universal design for
such as illustrations, songs, or PowerPoint presentations.
learning is also not a pre-packaged
l Use assistive technology such as spellcheckers, text-to-speech software, or
curriculum, though curriculum decalculators.
velopers are embracing new ways of
l Take part in self-assessment strategies such as role-playing, video reviews,
presenting information. Rather, it is
and peer feedback.
an educational process that weaves
itself throughout a school, he said.
SOURCE: National Center on Universal Design for Learning
"The places who are doing it well,
they're looking at their textbooks,

Clay Lomneth for Education Week

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

INSIDE ESSA

WHAT IS UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING?

24 | EDUCATION WEEK | February 24, 2016 | www.edweek.org

Van Horn, the director of special
education for the 11,500-student
system, said an essential element
of universal design for learning is
understanding what every lesson is
supposed to be about.
Take, for example, a lesson on the
causes of the Civil War. If a teacher
requires a student to write an essay
on the topic, then two outcomes are
being mixed-demonstrating knowledge of the Civil War, and demonstrating an ability to write an essay.
A student who struggles to write an
essay, for example, could still have
a deep understanding of the Civil
War, but just needs another way to
show that.

Thinking Differently
But it's not always easy to talk
educators out of believing that there
are only a few best ways to teach a
lesson and or deliver an assignment,
Van Horn said.
"We're still having those conversations," Van Horn said. Teachers
still wonder "if I don't do a test or if
I don't assign an essay, am I really
assessing?"
However, the district is not eliminating more traditional forms of
teaching, he said. For example, one
school has created a rotation where
students get large group instruction.
"We have to keep that built in, because that's part of the real world,"
he said.
Courtney Rushton, a 1st grade
teacher in the Bartholomew district,
said that universal design principles
extend to the way her classroom is
set up. Children can sit at regular
desks, a standing desk, or on yoga
balls.
"My high-energy kids may not
want to sit all day," she said.
Once, an administrator visited
her classroom when a student was
sprawled on Rushton's desk. During
the lesson she asked the student a
question. He nailed it, Rushton
said.
"The key part is letting go and
knowing that it's okay and they're
still going to learn," she said. "I have
found over the past three years that
I've been here that the more that
I let go and give control to my students, the more success that I see in
the classroom."

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Education Week - February 24, 2016

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