Universal Design For Instruction (UDI)
Universal Design for Instruction
“UDI means that, rather than designing for the average student, you design instruction for potential students who have broad ranges with respect to ability, disability, age, reading level, learning style, native language, race, and ethnicity.”
Sheryl Burgstahler, Ph.D.
Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) originates from the work of Scott, McGuire, and Shaw (2003) at the University of Connecticut Center for Universal Design, who expanded upon the 7 principles of universal design in architecture by adding “community of learners” and “instructional climate”:
| Equitable use: Instruction is designed to be useful to and accessible by people with diverse abilities. | Flexibility in use: Instruction is designed to accommodate a wide range of individual abilities. | Simple and intuitive: Instruction is designed in a straightforward and predictable manner, regardless of the students’ experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level. |
| Perceptible information: Instruction is designed so that necessary information is communicated effectively to the student, regardless of ambient conditions or the student’s sensory abilities. | Tolerance for error: Instruction anticipates variation in individual student learning pace and prerequisite skills. | Low physical effort: Instruction is designed to minimize nonessential physical effort in order to allow maximum attention to learning. |
| Size and space for approach and use: Instruction is designed with consideration for appropriate size and space for approach, reach, manipulations, and use regardless of a student’s body size, posture, mobility, and communication needs. | A community of learners: The instructional environment promotes interaction and communication among students and between students and faculty. | Instructional climate: Instruction is designed to be welcoming and inclusive. High expectations are espoused for all students. |
UDI Pros:
- Relatively short list of guidelines.
- Directive, but not prescriptive, allowing for academic freedom.
- Added emphasis on class culture and community building.
UDI Cons:
- Does not provide concrete examples to implement universal design into practice.
- Guidelines focused on physical spaces, not online environments.
UDI Resources:
- Universal Design: Process, Principles, & Applications (DO-IT)
- Universal Design Principles (Berkeley Disability Access and Compliance)
- Universal Design for Instruction (Oswego State University of New York)