UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING

The conceptual framework, “Why UDL? Because every child deserves access to a personalized education,” drives the mission of the Institute to prepare highly qualified and effective professional educators equipped to meet the diverse learning needs of all students. Since learner variability is as unique as the human fingerprint, we effectuate our mission by preparing beginning educators to link current cognitive and neuroscience research to classroom instructional practices through

Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

UDL is a research-based, teaching and learning framework that harnesses the power and flexibility of modern technology to eliminate instructional barriers and promote inclusive classrooms. For example, the design of web pages for users with low vision make it easier for all to read. UDL drives our online course delivery design and enhances personalized learning. We encourage teacher candidates to select their preferred format for reviewing and completing tasks, such as using text, audio, video, and/or graphics across desktop, mobile, and tablet platforms.  Since UDL fosters a sense of social, cognitive, and teaching presence within each course, our teacher candidates discover that we “practice what we preach.”