The usual process for making existing curricula more accessible is adaptation of curricula so that they are more accessible to all learners. Often, teachers themselves are forced to make difficult attempts at adapting inflexible “one-size-fits-all” curricular elements that were not designed to meet the variability of individual learners. The term Universal Design for Learning is often mistakenly applied to such after-the-fact adaptations.

CAST Professional Learning web page offers written UDL tips and resources related to developing goals, assessments, fostering engagement and expert learners, designing a learning environment and reducing stereotype threat.

A link to the ASCD website and an interview with Allison Posey, curriculum and design specialist at CAST.  The discussion centers applying UDL in the classroom.  

Learning Follows Access and Engagement: A Conversation with CAST's Allison Posey

A link to a website article describing three ways in which Assistive Technology can support students with disabilities.  

Higher Ed. faculty and students relate their experience with UDL in this brief closed caption video.  

Wide acceptance of the UDL approach makes general education classrooms more accessible to students with diverse needs, including students who receive special education services. California's traditional teaching regulations are revised to promote greater classroom flexibility and support inclusive education.    

Bouncy chairs, noise cancelling headphones, exercise balls, chairs with pedals, u-shaped desks, its all part of the modern UDL based classroom, where the variability in children’s learning needs are recognized and addressed.  Old fashioned, one-size fits-all fixtures give way to intentionally designed, flexible furniture.

The End Of Average: How We Succeed in a World That Values Sameness.  Dr. Todd Rose makes a case for honoring learner variabiity and against inflexible standards and curriculum.

Through two classroom scenarios, elementary and high school, Katie Novak illustrates how personalized learning through a UDL lens addresses learner variability, supports student agency, improves student outcomes and maintains the rigor of the curriculum. 

Animated video that explains the fundamental elements of UDL.