ETEC 610 Class Notes

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August 27, 2003


Class Notes

Assignment for Next Week

Create a Blog in class, the content of which is key ideas from the book Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age.

Your task is to introduce other teachers to the good ideas of UDL. Blogging is more thanjust creating the blog. It requires ongoing, even daily postings by you, and hopefully, responses and interactions from your other blog participants.

Tonight's activities:


Welcome to 610.


Explanation of approach used in this class. UDL. PBL. Announcements. Syllabus review. Questions/Answers.


Backing up your work.


Everyone must get a pack of blank CD-W or CD-RW. Back up at the end of each class period. Write your name and date on CD with a Sharpie.

 

Universal Design for Learning

See

 

Excerpt:
Underlying Premises

As a new paradigm for teaching, learning, assessment and curriculum development, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) draws upon and extends principles of universal design as used in architecture and product design. Architects practicing universal design create structures which accommodate the widest spectrum of users possible. In universally designed environments adaptability is subtle and integrated into the design. Designing for the divergent needs of special populations increases usability for everyone. The curb cut is a classic example. Although they were originally designed to help those in wheel chairs negotiate curbs, curb cuts ease travel for those pushing carriages, riding skateboards, pulling suitcases, or simply walking.

UDL shifts old assumptions about teaching and learning in four fundamental ways:
  • Students with disabilities fall along a continuum of learner differences rather than constituting a separate category
  • Teacher adjustments for learner differences should occur for all students, not just those with disabilities
  • Curriculum materials should be varied and diverse including digital and online resources, rather than centering on a single textbook
  • Instead of remediating students so that they can learn from a set curriculum, curriculum should be made flexible to accommodate learner differences

The central practical premise of UDL is that a curriculum should include alternatives to make it accessible and appropriate for individuals with different backgrounds, learning styles, abilities, and disabilities in widely varied learning contexts. The "universal" in universal design does not imply one optimal solution for everyone. Rather, it reflects an awareness of the unique nature of each learner and the need to accommodate differences, creating learning experiences that suit the learner and maximize his or her ability to progress.

Source www.cast.com/udl

 

Textbook for the course:

Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age

Available online free: