Accessible Design/Universal Design for Learning

LEARN: What and Why

Accessible Design

Designing for accessibility involves considering the specific needs of people with disabilities. The process of designing for accessibility refers to developing products, services and facilities in ways that ensure they can be used independently by people with a variety of disabilities. (The Center for Universal Design, 2019). While accessibility as a design concern has existed for a long time, passage of legislation such as

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the subsequent amendments, have increased general public concern with accessibility in areas such as technology and education. It is also thought that designing for accessibility – to meet the needs of people with various disabilities – is ultimately beneficial to all learners (The Center for Universal Design, 2019). For example, a curb cut or ramp may have been designed to assist a small group of individuals with a specific need, such as wheelchair users, but are actually beneficial to the broader population such as children on bicycles or parents with strollers. The same is true in online education: a student with a hearing impairment might need a transcript of a lecture; however, English language learners and students who prefer reading to listening would also benefit from transcriptions. 

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

A related yet broader concept, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework to “improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn” (CAST 2020). It is a set of principles for teaching, learning, course design, and curriculum development that give all individuals, regardless of ability, equal opportunities to learn. Developed by the nonprofit educational organization CAST, UDL is rooted in the premise that there are various types of learners—and that we all fall on a spectrum of ability and disability. It posits that the learning environment (as opposed to the learners) often has barriers, and that we must work to identify and remove those barriers, so all students have equal access to learning. The UDL approach aims to “optimize teaching and learning for all by setting clear, rigorous goals, anticipating barriers and proactively designing to minimize those barriers” (Perez & Johnston, 2020). You do not need specific tools for UDL but rather give the students the opportunity to choose from the resources and tools you already have.  The goal of UDL is ultimately to create “expert learners”—those who have learned how to learn and are motivated to learn more (Perez & Johnston, 2020).

ENGAGE: How to do it

Not all UDL lessons look alike. However, there are several things common elements of a UDL experience, which include:

• Identifying the learning objectives for all learners
• Giving intentional, flexible options for all students to use
• Providing learners access to resources from the start of a learning experience
• Allowing students to build and internalize their own learning

3 Principles of UDL

UDL, which is based on brain science, interprets human variability in relation to the parts of the brain that control the “what” (recognition network), the “how” (strategic network) and the “why” (affective network) of learning. Accordingly, UDL has 3 principles that underpin its approach:

1. Provide multiple means of engagement
2. Provide multiple means of representation
3. Provide multiple means of action and expression

UDL Principles in Action (Posey, 2020)

Universal Design for Learning Framework

CAST offers comprehensive guidelines for implementing the UDL principles into your teaching. For further description and examples of each principle, visit The UDL Guidelines (CAST, 2018).

APPLY to your course

Review your Course Policies & Syllabus

It is important in an online course to be clear and upfront about your policies, and not make any assumptions about what students may have experienced previously. UMass Amherst Faculty Senate mandates Accommodation (and Academic Honesty) statements for all syllabi seeking Faculty Senate approval. An accessible syllabus is a foundational item that will allow all your students, regardless of ability, learn about your course, find important information, and navigate the course as the semester progresses. In the end, your syllabus should always be unique to you and your course. 

You can also view CAST's resource on creating a UDL Syllabus. 

State Communication Expectations

Explicitly stating your email/phone, how you prefer to communicate with students (via email/the LMS messaging system), your available or unavailable days/times, office hours, and expected response time (e.g. within 24 hrs or within 1 business day), is really helpful to students. They find it less intimidating to approach their faculty, especially online, when they know it’s a time that you are comfortable with.

It is also helpful to clearly communicate assignment due dates—as well as when students can expect to get feedback on their work. Receiving feedback in a timely manner helps students understand their current progress in the course and where they need to improve, leading to a better and more engaged student experience.

Moreover, you can take the time and space to explain to students your communication policies and due dates, and how you’ve intentionally considered their needs in your course design.

Collaborate with UMass Disability Services

The Office of Disability Services helps students get the accommodations they need to provide an equitable educational experiences. If you have a student in your course with a documented disability, you can work with the Office of Disability Services to ensure you are providing the accommodations your student(s) need. For example, if you have a student with a documented disability in your class, you can have your presentations captions by Cielo24. Moreover, if a student reports a disability or needed accommodation to you that is not documented, you can direct them to the Office of Disability Services to get them registered and the support they need.

Take Steps Toward Universal Design of Online Courses

UA Little Rock Disability Resource Center (2020) outlines 10 steps instructors can take to move online classes toward Universal Design:

1. Include a welcoming access statement.
2. Provide simple, consistent navigation.
3. Choose tools carefully.
4. Model and teach good discussion board etiquette.
5. Use color with care.
6. Make sure text is readable.
7. Provide accessible document formats.
8. Describe graphics and visual elements.
9. Caption videos and transcribe audio clips.
10. Rethink, redesign PowerPoint presentations.

To see more detailed, useful information on how to implement each of these steps, see the Ten Steps Toward Universal Design of Online Courses resource (UA Little Rock Disability Resource Center, 2020).

Creating Accessible Documents

The IDEAS team has several resources you can access to learn more about creating accessible for your course:

• Creating Accessible Documents Video (4 min)
• Best Practices for an Accessible Online Classroom
• Creating Accessible Course Materials.

While the best practices for creating accessible documents are the same for any operating system/platform, the ways in which they happen can differ. The following links contain instructions to create accessible documents. They outline best practices and the steps necessary to create or edit a document to be accessible.

References & Resources

CAST. (2020, September 25). About Universal Design for Learning.

CAST (2018). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 2.2.

CAST (n.d.). UDL Syllabus. 

The Center for Universal Design in Education, University of Washington. (2019, April 30). What is the difference between accessible, usable, and universal design?

Perez, L. & Johnston, S. (2020, July 30). Bringing Equity and Inclusion to Remote Learning with UDL [Webinar]. ThreePlay Media: Boston, MA.

Posey, A. (2020, August 13). Universal Design for Learning (UDL): A Teacher's Guide.                                           

UA Little Rock Disability Resource Center. (2020). Ten Steps Toward Universal Design of Online Courses.