- Video Tip - Universal Design for Learning
- TOPkit Survey - Your Voice Matters—Guide the Next Chapter of TOPkit
- Top Tips - Five Essential Strategies for Implementing UDL in Your Courses
- New from TOPkit - Blazing the TRAIIL, Design with AI, GenZ: From Digital Natives to Smart Citizens
- Ask ADDIE - Too Many Tabs, Not Enough Time
- From the Community - UDL Resources and Assessment Strategies
- Top Community Topics
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This video from the University of Virginia's Teaching Hub introduces Universal Design for Learning (UDL), a framework that promotes inclusive teaching by offering multiple ways for faculty to engage students, present content, and assess learning. It highlights how UDL’s three core principles, engagement, representation, and action and expression, can support diverse learners in college and beyond.
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Your Voice Matters—Guide the Next Chapter of TOPkit |
We’re taking a fresh look at where the TOPkit initiative is headed, and your input can help shape what’s next. Please take a moment to fill out the Needs Assessment Survey. Your feedback helps us figure out how TOPkit can better support the instructional design and faculty development community.
Begin survey →
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Five Essential Strategies for Implementing UDL in Your Courses |
Moving from One-Size-Fits-All to All-Students-Succeed |
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First Steps Toward UDL Implementation |
Traditional course design often follows a one-size-fits-all approach that creates barriers for many students, leading instructors to rely on reactive accommodations once issues emerge. At the University of Central Florida (UCF), Student Accessibility Services (SAS) receives numerous accommodation requests aimed at removing these barriers. To address this more effectively, the SAS office encourages faculty and instructional designers to adopt proactive strategies that build accessibility into courses from the outset. UDL provides one such approach by embedding flexibility into course foundations. Research by Tobin and Behling (2018) shows that implementing UDL principles during initial course development improves learning outcomes across diverse student populations while reducing the need for individual accommodations. UCF’s UDL Toolkit offers a rich set of resources that instructional designers use to guide faculty in the seamless integration of UDL practices into their course design. The following five tips offer practical ways instructional designers can help faculty to integrate UDL principles into their courses.
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Design Flexible Assessments from the Start. Traditional assessments often follow rigid formats that may not accurately capture student learning. UDL-based assessment maintains consistent learning objectives while varying demonstration methods to increase student success and engagement. Offer multiple formats for demonstrating mastery such as written papers, presentations, creative projects, or digital portfolios. Implement flexible deadlines with clear parameters and course pacing guidelines. Create embedded formative assessment opportunities throughout the course and develop clear rubrics focused on learning objectives rather than delivery methods. Build in grade cushions (such as dropping the lowest scores) to accommodate unexpected challenges like illness, work conflicts, or family emergencies.
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Provide Multiple Ways to Access Content. Students process information differently and benefit from multiple entry points to course material. UDL supports this through multiple means of representation, encouraging the use of layered content formats such as text, audio, video, and interactive media to enhance retention (CAST, 2018; Kieran & Anderson, 2018). A 2023 review highlights the need for clearer implementation of these strategies to better assess their impact on learning outcomes. To support diverse learners, design courses with flexible, multimodal materials, consistent structure, and accessible features like captions and transcripts. Provide both synchronous and asynchronous options to accommodate varied schedules, learning preferences, and life circumstances.
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Build Choice and Engagement into Course Activities. Student engagement increases when courses incorporate choice and autonomy while maintaining clear expectations and learning objectives. This flexibility particularly benefits students managing multiple life commitments such as work, family, or military service. Allow topic selection within structured parameters to increase personal investment. Provide options for individual or collaborative work to accommodate different working styles and schedules. Create multiple pathways to participate in class discussions including written forums, video responses, or live participation. Offer varied ways to connect course content to student interests and experiences. Build opportunities for student feedback and course adjustments throughout the semester.
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Integrate Technology Purposefully. Technology can enhance UDL implementation, but it should follow pedagogical goals rather than drive them. Simple, low-tech approaches often prove equally effective as sophisticated digital tools when strategically aligned with learning objectives. Use learning management systems with consistent navigation and organization. Provide recorded lectures that students can review at their own pace and location. Implement discussion forums that accommodate different communication preferences and time zones. Utilize digital tools that provide immediate feedback and progress tracking. Ensure all technology tools are accessible with appropriate alternative text and keyboard navigation capabilities.
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Implement UDL Gradually and Systematically. Successful UDL implementation requires systematic planning and gradual integration rather than a comprehensive overhaul. Instructional designers can work with faculty to design courses with a measured approach that ensures lasting change while maintaining course quality. Start by evaluating one course component through the UDL lens, identifying existing elements that already support diverse learners. Many faculty discover they're already implementing UDL strategies without realizing it. Build upon successful elements by adding one additional means of engagement, representation, or expression each semester. Systematically incorporate new UDL strategies based on student feedback and observed outcomes. This iterative approach allows for continuous refinement while maintaining course effectiveness and managing faculty workload.
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It’s Time to Embrace the Fundamental UDL shift! |
UDL represents a fundamental shift from reactive accommodation to proactive inclusion. By designing courses that recognize and support diverse learning needs from the start, faculty create environments where all students can excel while reducing their own administrative burden. The evidence is clear: when we remove unnecessary barriers to learning through thoughtful course design, students demonstrate stronger academic outcomes and greater satisfaction with their educational experiences.
Rather than lowering academic standards, UDL creates multiple pathways to achieve the same rigorous learning objectives. As higher education continues to serve increasingly diverse populations, UDL provides a framework for creating truly inclusive learning environments. The initial investment in course redesign pays dividends through improved student success, reduced accommodation needs, and more satisfying teaching experiences.
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| GenZ: From Digital Natives to Smart Citizens |
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Too Many Tabs, Not Enough Time |
Strategies for Large Online Courses |
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Dear ADDIE,
I’m teaching a very large online course this semester, and I’m honestly at my limit. Between the nonstop discussion posts, grading assignments, and answering what feels like hundreds of emails, I’m struggling to keep up. I want my students to feel seen and supported, but I’m starting to worry that I’m just going through the motions.
How do instructors manage such large online classes without losing their minds – or their connection to the students? Read more→
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UDL Resources and Assessment Strategies |
Building on Community Knowledge and Best Practices |
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The TOPkit community has developed extensive resources that complement UDL implementation. Community contributors have shared insights about assessment design, multimedia integration, and inclusive teaching practices that align with UDL principles.
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Dr. Butulis' guidance on Planning an Online Community of Inquiry demonstrates how UDL principles naturally support the three presences essential for student engagement: cognitive, teaching, and social presence. Her framework for building student connections aligns well with UDL's emphasis on multiple means of engagement, showing how inclusive design creates environments where all students can participate meaningfully in learning communities.
- The community's exploration of Best Practices for Using Video in Online Learning aligns with UDL's multiple means of representation by providing content through various formats. These resources help faculty create accessible multimedia that supports diverse learning preferences while meeting technical accessibility requirements.
- TOPkit's Faculty Development Decision Guide provides frameworks for implementing inclusive teaching practices systematically, supporting the gradual UDL implementation approach recommended for sustainable change.
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Would you like to share your UDL implementation experience with the TOPkit community? Reach out to us with your success stories and practical strategies at TOPkit@ucf.edu.
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Generative AI may have been used to retrieve relevant research, generate suggested language, and enhance original content.
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Bren Bedford, MNM, SFC®, Web Project Analyst II, Center for Distributed Learning, University of Central Florida
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Florence Williams, Ph.D., Associate Instructional Designer, Center for Distributed Learning, University of Central Florida
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