Free UDL Digital Badge, Autumn 2022
Staff at the University of Limerick will again be facilitating the free online UDL Badge Course this Autumn 2022.
What is the badge?
Free 10-week introductory course on Universal Design for Learning organised by AHEAD and UCD Access & Lifelong Learning and facilitated by UL staff.
Implementation of universal design principles in Teaching & Learning promotes inclusivity and equity while also ‘future-proofing’ your teaching.
As our classrooms and lecture theatres become increasingly diverse, our practices must also adapt to reflect the changing landscape of higher education. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience, which guides the development of flexible learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences and cater for the wide range of diversity in our lecture rooms. This CPD course will give you an introduction to the concept of Universal Design for Learning and invite you to review and update your own Teaching and Learning practice.
You’ll learn to
- Reflect on the diversity of your students
- Gain a good understanding of the Universal Design for Learning framework and how it can support diverse learners
- Redesign some elements of your teaching and learning practice based on your knowledge of UDL principles
- Consider how you will change your practice more broadly in line with a UDL approach
Who can take this course?
Strictly for staff currently working in Higher Education or Further Education and Training in the Republic of Ireland. Places are allocated on a first-come first-served basis. Participants must have some teaching activity planned during weeks 5-9 that you can work on as part of the UDL Redesign Activity (can be individual class, group of classes, training session or assignment - flexible). Book quickly to avoid disappointment.
Time Involved
Approximately 25 hours over 10 weeks, roughly 2.5 hours per week. Optional 5-hour add-on for participants interested in rolling this open course out to colleagues in the future. Webinars are recorded and meetings are scheduled around your timetable so all aspects of the course can work around your schedule.
Cost
FREE but places are limited and in high demand so act fast.
When does the course run?
The course runs from Oct 3rd - Dec 12th 2022.
Resources
- UDL resources at UL
- What is UDL? – AHEAD webpage
- 6 x 10 min videos – previous badge participants on their UDL implementations as part of the badge.
Register
Registration is available on Eventbrite until September 20th 2022.
"Undertaking the Digital Badge in UDL course was highly useful to understand the education process in more detail, to understand education more from a student perspective, and to improve the content that I create."
"I soon realised that the course did not only apply to teaching staff but also to anyone interacting with an audience. It deals with motivation, engagement and communication styles which can be applied to many different contexts."
"Universal Design for Learning was something I had a vague sense of prior to undertaking the badge, but as I went through the course, what struck me time and again were memories of the students I had come across who did not ‘fit’ with either
1) how I was taught and learn myself or
2) how most teaching was delivered in my programme.Their experiences were re-imagined for me through the UDL badge, helping me to realise the many ways in which considering lots of different approaches to learning could be factored into my teaching upfront, rather than making ‘accommodations’ when various specific situations for different students were communicated to me during semesters.
The UDL badge has led to me feeling a lot more confident about taking different approaches to how material is conveyed, engaged with and how learning is assessed, in particular, without loosing academic rigour or accountability."
This course broadened my horizons by challenging my teaching practice and encouraged more experimentation. It inspired me with the confidence and ability to develop additional creative techniques for engaging students deeper. One such example involves using coloured Lego bricks to explain a “Literature Review” in 3D form, making an abstract concept become more concrete for learners.
Another enjoyable aspect was the small group collaboration with UL colleagues from other faculties and divisions. This encouraged more divergent thinking, and opportunities to discuss and reflect on course content. We were also required to peer review each other’s module redesign assignment and assess it through a UDL lens.
I became more culturally aware about the diversity of student groups and the importance of using images, which universally appeal to everyone. I also learned to ensure that all online documents are produced in word rather than pdf format. This small adjustment facilitates students' ease in adapting content for their own individual study needs, by making it more accessible if using screen reader technology.