A UDL professional learning community (PLC) is a departure from traditional models of professional learning because it requires teachers to confront their current beliefs, construct new knowledge, and participate in inquiry-based, collaborative experiences that support shifts in thinking. Embedding the UDL principles into coaching sessions helps PLC members to confront their existing conceptions about teaching learning. UDL coaching purposefully addresses the three UDL principles by offering 1) multiple ways for educators to build knowledge, 2) multiple pathways to engage and sustain participants’ interest over time, and 3) multiple means of supporting teachers’ construction of new pedagogical knowledge and skills and application of new instructional strategies. This resouce will outline coaching strategies that encourage PLC members to articulate their beliefs about teaching, learning and UDL, and transform these ideas into practice.

True UDL implementation requires activities that lead to culture change; it is much more than an instructional bag of tricks or a collection of strategies. The implementation process differs across school cultures, and yet, in all cases the PLC model has been the driver of progress for Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).