Universal Design as a Transformative Agenda in

Higher Education

Dónal RiceSenior Design and Policy Advisordjrice@nda.ie@_donalrice086 8567357www.universaldesign.ie

• Senior Design Advisor, ICT, Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, National Disability Authority Ireland

• Mandate 376: CEN PT European ICT Accessibility Procurement Toolkit

• ITU/G3ict e-Accessibility Policy Toolkit for Persons with Disabilities• ITU Academy course developer• ITU-D expert

• Prof Diploma on Human Rights and Equality in Public Administration

• LLM in International Comparative Disability Law and Policy

Centre For Excellence in Universal Design (CEUD)

• Standards

• Education and Professional Development

• Awareness

Here we come- a poem by students -

Centre for Excellence in Universal Design (CEUD) Established 2007 in the NDA – Disability Act 2005

Universal Design in Ireland• Functions to promote more accessibility and usability in Built

environment, Products, Services and ICT systems.

• Universal Design is the design and composition of an environment so that it can be accessed, understood and used by all people, to the greatest extent possible, regardless of their age, size, ability or disability.

• Synopsis from the Irish Disability Act 2005

Universal Design AssumesEvery person experiences barriers, reduced functioning, some form of disability – temporary or permanent – at some stage in life

Ireland’s National Disability Strategy launched in September 2004

Disability Act 2005

Formation of;Centre for Excellence in Universal Design (CEUD) January 2007

Built environmentProducts & ServicesICT 3

7 Principles + 29 Guidelines

The Principles of Universal Design

1. Equitable Use (fair and good value)2. Flexibility in Use (modes, options, adjustable)3. Simple and Intuitive (cognitive functions)4. Perceptible Information (sensory functions)5. Tolerance for Error (fail-safe, security)6. Low Physical Effort (strength, endurance)7. Size and Space for Approach and Use (BE)

2006, UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Values)

2001, International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (Framework for Analysis)

2011, World Report on Disability (Evidence)

United Nations and World Health OrganizationValues, Evidence, Framework for Analysis

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A Paradigm Shift

Accessibility:Provides basic access and usability of facilities, products and services for people with disabilities

Universal design:Enables independence and social participation for all through continual improvement.

(World Disability Report 2011)

• Universal Design offers an opportunity to re-align and underpin current approaches with the Values, & Beliefs congruent with

Equality, Justice and Human Rights.

Universal Design - for All PeopleTraditional ‘Medicalised’ Model of Home Adaptations

Courtesy Alison Wright www.easylivinghome.co.uk

We recognise excellence in professional practice

• RIAI awards

• Institute of Designers in Ireland Awards

• Irish Internet Net visionary Awards

• eGovernment Awards

We recognise excellence in education

• Universal Design Grand Challenge Students Award

Radisson Blu, Thursday 23rd May 2019

Building for EveryoneA Universal Design Approach

www.universaldesign.ie/bfe

Oversampling the tails (extremes) of the distribution curve is a key approach to inform Universal Design

http://www.universaldesign.ie/tourism

Universal Design for Customer Engagement in Tourism Services (Toolkits) (Case Studies)

Viking Splash

+ 18% revenue- Fewer complaints

Example of style of the pages in Toolkits

I.S. EN 17161:2019 ‘Design for All - Accessibility following a Design for All approach in products, goods and services -Extending the range of users’

What can this look likein

Education ?

Access Inclusion Model

Fuji Kindergarten, Tachikawa City, Tokyo, Japan

“In choosing a pre-school for my daughter, the location with outdoor space to play and explore was very important.”

“I think every age group is considered, both in the indoor and outdoor areas. There is something for them all to do, especially outdoor. Kids get to be kids and use their imagination.”

Power of Design

• Aimed at Primary and Second school students• Delivered through Junior Achievement Ireland• In conjunction with Dublin City Council

Strand 1: Creating Designs for our Tomorrows

Communicating Design

Thinking

Design and Designing -

Product analysis and design

project.

What is Design and how does Design impact

me and my community?

STEM An introduction

to Materials, Manufacture

and Mechanical systems.

My Built Environment -Design Project

STEM An introduction to Electronics and Control

systems

Strand 2: Universal Design and Technology Built environment focus

Universal Design for ICT

Universal Design and

my community

Design for Change -

Project/ Report

Strand 3: Designing accessible spaces and services UD for ICT

Course audit and reflection:

Preparatory lesson for final

project

Universal Design Final Project and Design Portfolio

Course Evaluation and future learning

Strand 4: Universal Design Final Project

Junior Cert Short course 70 Lessons – Delivered across 4 Strands

UD in Education projects• Primary schools• Design our Tomorrows – with Junior Achievement Ireland

• 2nd Level Curriculum• Phase 1 Curriculum developed• Phase 2 (Pilot) – trialling Curriculum (TY - ETB – STEM)

• 3rd Level • UD Champions workshop on current up take on UD • Proposed booklet (Primer) re UD in 3rd level • Universal Design Grand Challenge

• CPD• Phase 2: BE - RIAI on development of UD curriculum• Phase 1: ICT – research completed – Phase 2 commencing•

Meet “The Normals”

Universal Design in Education

Traditional• Disability as an impairment or

abnormality in the person• Assessment: Assure students

with disabilities are included in high-stakes assessment

Universal Design• Disability: A component of

human diversity• Assessment: Assure that

standardised assessments are designed to be accessible to the widest range of students

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

• UDL framework is based in the neuroscience of learning, and its principles emphasise three key aspects of pedagogy.

• Multiple Means of:

• representing information,• expression of knowledge, and• engagement in learning

• (Rose 2015 Rose, Meyer and Hitchcock, 2005; Meyer, Rose, & Gordon 2014)

• www.CAST.org

Universal Design + Universal Design for LearningUD + UDL = Inclusive Education Environment for all

• Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on New scientific insights into how humans learn.

• UDL guides the design of instructional goals, assessments, methods, and materials that can be customized and adjusted to meet individual needs.

Whole Systems: Universal Design in Education

Person

Activity

Environment

http://universaldesign.ie/UDsitefiles/Universal_Design_and_the_ICF-Guidance_Summary.Pdf

Universal Design System Person, Activity and Environment (PAE)

Universal Design in Education – 5 pillarsU

DL • Multiple modes of• Instruction• Presentation• Evaluation

• Curriculum• Build

Environment• Services• Technology

Built

Env

ironm

ent • Planning

• Policies• External

environment• Entrances and

Horizontal Circulation

• Vertical Circulation

• Internal Environment and Services

• Sanitary Facilities• Etc

Serv

ices • Planning

• Policies

• Staff• Student services

Tech

nolo

gy • Procurement• Policies

• LMS• Mobile apps• Assistive

Technology

• Creation and publication of learning resources (UDL)

Curr

icul

um

• UDL

• Engineering• Design (products

and services)• Architecture• Computer Science

GovernanceEquality, Diversity and Inclusion

Insinstitutionalisation

Implementation

Initiation

Triple I Model (Fullan) 1987

• Materials• Resources

Initiation

• Practices• Professional

Development

Implementation

• Attitudes• Behaviour

Insinstitutionalisation

Fullan 1987

Change Process

https://www.udheit2018.com/

Dublin Castle - Halloween 2018

120 Papers – 42 Workshops

Universal design and Higher Education in transformation congress

Education – Putting Universal Design for Learning at the Heart of Education – Embedding Universal Design Content Across the Curriculum

Universal Design for Learning

The most pervasive learning disability in schools, and the

number one challenge for Universal Design for Learning,

isn’t physical or cognitive, it’s emotional—turning

around kids who are turned off by school.

• David Rose Keynote Speaker 2015 Dublin

‘Three Decades of Universal Design -Defining Moments’

• Connected Voices in Learning Exhibition

• Collaborative Poem• Maker Spaces

Ms. Margaret KINSELLA, Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown, Dublin, Ireland

Meet the Normals

Architecture – developing an empathetic understanding• Approaching Universal Design through the lens of human age

emphasizes the physical, sensorial, and cognitive modes of spatial understanding of the young and old

• offers a focused perspective through which to address difference and diversity in architectural education

Age-Focused Design – A Pedagogical Approach Integrating Empathy and Embodiment - Sarah Gunawanand Julia Jamrozik University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning

• A pedagogical approach that prioritizes human embodiments, over physical bodies, and integrates empathic understanding as critical to an inclusive, human-centered design methodology.

‘Age-Focused Design - A PedagogicalApproach Integrating Empathy andEmbodiment’

Sarah GUNAWAN, and Julia JAMROZIK, University at Buffalo School of Architecture and

Supporting teachers through UDL• Lack of knowledge of teachers on how diverse student groups actually are• Tendency to promote accessibility rather than inclusion• Good supports for students with documented disabilities – but stigmatizing • => developing course modules through UDL• => need to provide technical design solutions

“Greensboro College – a Model of UDL in the Curriculum”• Fully committed to embracing UDL e.g. Forensic Anthropology, Criminal Justice

department• Uses multiple means of representation, expression, and engagement• => ‘process is labor intensive and messy but the product is worth it’

Bitte RYDEMAN, Håkan EFTRING and Per-Olof HEDVALL Department of Design Sciences, Lund University, Sweden

Georgieann BODGAN, aGreensboro College, Greensboro, NC and Ilari PASS, bGardner-Webb University, Boiling Springs, NC

‘Bringing Human Diversity into DesignProcesses Through Empathic Modelling’

Lena LORENTZEN, Design Department, Mid Sweden University, SwedenPer-Olof HEDVALL, Certec, Department of Design Sciences, Lund University, Sweden

• Designing for the extremes• Simulating diversity• Co-designing• Engaging with people in the community

Making space for play

Professional development for teachers in maker pedagogies1. It allows for interest-driven learning of the tools2. It uses an inquiry-based and constructivist approach to learning the tools3. It includes opportunities for teachers to take on leadership roles4. It provides a balance of pre- and in-classroom learning environments for the teachers to develop a deep understanding of the tools and pedagogies.

Re-Making Teacher ProfessionalDevelopment, Janette HUGHES, ,Laura MORRISON and Laura DOBOSUOIT

System and Institutional Design and Development

2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

• 10 targets, 15 indicators (available at https://unstats.un.org/)

• Covering housing (including slum upgrading) and basic services

• Transport systems• City & settlement planning• Cultural and natural heritage• Climate change, disaster resilience

and preparedness • Environmental impact of cities• Access to green, public spaces• Urban-rural linkages• Support for LDCs via local building

procurement

What is new and different about the 17 SDGs?

First, and most important, these Goals apply to every nation … and every sector. Cities, businesses, schools, organizations, all are

challenged to act. This is called

Universality

Second, it is recognized that the Goals are all inter-connected, in a system. We cannot aim to achieve just one

Goal. We must achieve them all. This is called

Integration

And finally, it is widely recognized that achieving these Goals involves making very big, fundamental changes in

how we live on Earth. This is called

Transformation

Universal Design + Sustainable Design

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Key Elements of Universal Design Approach

• Understanding Difference – person centred• Based on 7 Principles• Process – Iterative • Multi-stakeholder participation• Whole systems focused

• UD is the ‘highest expression of a person-centred planning philosophy’• ‘to the greatest extend possible’ acknowledges the real world complexity and

points to a process, not a size idealised ‘one size fits all’ solution

‘Implementing Universal Design and the ICF in Higher Education: Towards a Model That Achieves Quality Higher Education forAll’• UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 11 - capacities of all persons, on equal grounds, in the planning of our built environment and services

• Goal 4 - in our quality educational systems • Uses the International classification of functioning as conceptual framework

and assessment tool• Requires designing learning environments that take inclusion as a starting

point• => UD is the ‘highest expression of a person-centred planning philosophy’• ‘to the greatest extend possible’ acknowledges the real world complexity and

points to a process, not a size idealised ‘one size fits all’ solutionGiulia M. L. BENCINI, Ca Foscari University of Venice, Department of Linguistics and Comparative Cultural Studies, Ilaria GAROFOLO, University of Trieste, Department of Engineering and Architecture, Alberto ARENGHI, University of Brescia, Department of Civil Engineering, Architecture, Land,Environment and of Mathematics

“What is the real potential of Universal Design as a transformative agent”• Accessibility - easy to explain and control, a set of defined measures

and requirements• Universal design - rests on some of the same measures, is complex

and close to boundless• Moving from a social issue to a matter of equality and human rigths

• UD solutions are attractive – e.g. features in buses, clear signage in buildings, clear and simple instructions

• Ultimately cost effective and sustainable • Norway continues to be committed

Universal Design as a Technical Norm and Juridical Term – A Factor of Development or Recession? Senior adviser Olav Rand BRINGAa1 The Ministry of Children and Equality, Norway

Partnership and community engagement

‘Investigating and Applying UniversalDesign: A Partnership Between a Universityand an Art Museum’• Community-Based Universal Design Projects - Worcester Art Museum• Occupational Therapy Department - the physical environment in the

context of an undergraduate course• Communication and Sciences Department - delivery of docents’

presentations for individuals with communication disorders

Joanne GALLAGHER WORTHLEYa,1, Linda S. LARRIVEE b and Susanna E. MEYERc aWorcester State University, Worcester, MA USA

Universal Design Grand Challenge winners

Community

UniversityIndivdualUniversal Design

as a constantimprovement PROCESSnot an End State

Universal Design as transformative agent in higher education • Requires a focus on the individual• Requires a systems approach• Embraces diversity – uses it as the basis for a collaborative and

iterative design approach• UD is the ‘highest expression of a person-centred planning

philosophy’• ‘to the greatest extend possible’ acknowledges the real world complexity and

points to a process, not a size idealised ‘one size fits all’ solution

• Constant improvement – ‘its messy but worth it’

Universal Design and AT Conferences • 2020 University Aalto Helsinki Finland

• 2022 University Brescia Italy

• 2019 Assistive Technology ConferenceBologna Italy Aug 2019 – AAATE

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Thank you

Dónal RiceSenior Design and Policy Advisordjrice@nda.ie@_donalrice086 8567357www.universaldesign.ie