Universal Design for Education "More than 1 billion of us live with disabilities. We must remove all barriers that affect the inclusion and participation

Universal Design for Education

"More than 1 billion of us live with disabilities. We must remove all barriers that affect the inclusion and participation of persons with disabilities in society, including through changing attitudes that fuel stigma and institutionalize discrimination.”

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,Secretary General of the U.N.

Paula Sotnik, ICI, UMASS Boston

Today’s Goal

Learn about and Understand how Universal Design for Learning and Education benefits all diverse learners and all abilities!

1.Thank Differently!2.What really is a “disability”?3.Universal Design4.Service Learning


Turn to the person sitting next to you and define yourself in ONE word


It’s Just a Label

DisabledSpecial Education Children

AutisticWheelchair Bound

AmputeeSchizophrenic

ALS PatientSpina Bifida

Attention Deficit DisorderTraumatic Brain Injury


“Labeling is definitive; once we say it then it holds meaning” (Namka).

“Judy is a thin 40-year-old woman with cerebral palsy who cannot walk or perform daily basic care needs… “

Judy also likes shopping, can write, use her communication board, has a great sense of humor….


What’s in a label ?

“Disability” does not define or is not the person.

“Disability” is created by poorly created buildings, materials, bad attitudes and not by

the uniqueness of individuals

Stairs, text, others needing to be educated and our persistence to one way of doing things

create a “disability”


These pictures show fashion models, not the “disabled”



MEDICAL MODEL THINKING SOCIAL MODEL THINKING

Child is “faulty” Child is valued!

Diagnosis Strengths & needs defined by self & others.

Labeling Identify barriers -> create solutions

Impairment = focus of attention Outcome-based program design

Assessment, monitoring, programs of “therapy” imposed

Resources made available to “ordinary” services.

Segregations and separate services Training for parents, families and professionals

Ordinary needs put on hold Relationships nurtured

Re-entry when and if normal enough or permanent exclusion

Diversity welcomed, child is included

Society is unchanged We evolve, grow and get better! Paula Sotnik, ICI, UMASS BostonAdapted from Micheline Mason; R 1994; Reiser 2004

Let’s change the paradigm!Let’s think differently!


In the U.S., we pay to kill cockroaches and spiders. In Thailand, people pay to eat cockroaches and spiders.

Great change has always come from thinking outside the box. Thai Nguyen - http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237866

That which is familiar, can “cripple” us, can force our thinking into a prison.


http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237866



Inclusion is not...

•Clustering all people with disabilities into a special class or social center

•Giving “special privileges” to people with disabilities.

•Feeling sorry for people with disabilities

•People with disabilities as recipients of volunteer service only

Inclusion can look like...

•Martina, a woman who is blind, sings in her church choir.

•Andrea, a woman with cerebral palsy, tutors neighborhood children in a local volunteer center

•Tyrone advocates for his own rights and teaches other people about disability rights issues

•Adam, who has Down syndrome, is a server at a restaurant

•Lee, an eight-year-old, participates in after school activities with help from her portable ventilator



Universal Design and Universal Design for Learning can be the answer!

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) –

1: The WHAT - Provide multiple means of representation, gives learners a variety of ways to obtain and absorb information and knowledge.

Examples: Teaching uses color coding, written and verbal guidance, use of international symbols and pictures, tactile materials, speech to text/text to speech technology, video clips, highlighting text.

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2: The HOW - Provide multiple means of action and expression provides learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know.

Examples: Students develop and use flashcard visuals rather than text to respond to questions and indicate knowledge of words. Students photograph progress- before and after photographs document outcomes.


3: The WHY - Provide multiple means of engagement includes a variety of ways that helps students attend to and engage in learning. Examples: Students can learn in small groups, solo, use of Flipcam assists with journaling, “self-reflection” and records the “what, so what, now what”


Universal Design for EveryoneClosed Captioning is used by couples, people at the gym, bar patrons and travelers at airports

Curb cuts are used by mother’s with strollers, bicyclists, people pushing cards and seniors

Electric doors help when we have coffee in one hand and bags in the other.

Books on tape are used by automobile drivers, students, and the elderly

• entrances with no steps that make it easier to enter a building

• wider doorways that are easier for everyone to enter, enhance interior circulation, and add a more spacious

• lever door handles instead of door knobs that are easier to open by everyone

• single-lever controls on faucets that are easier to operate and make adjustments of water temperature and volume simple for everyone

• light switches and electrical receptacles located at a height that is more reachable by those who may have trouble bending over or reaching up

• All materials provided in large print with black ink on white paper, photographs, pictures, international symbols

• Repeating questions and comments when conversing in a large group

Universal design: Specific features that are more usable by everyone

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• “puff paint” to mark dials, rulers

• changes in schedules

• modified tables, desks, workspaces

• talking watches, calculators, rulers

• private, quiet space

• no scent policy

• headphones

• technology solutions, computer software

• color coded tape

• photos and visuals used with text

• verbal or audio descriptions of visuals and videos

• audio-recorded, Braille or electronic-formatted notes, handouts, and text

• instructions provided in multiple formats, including visual, auditory and tactile

• captioned presentations and conferences

• large print materials, contract enhanced (black type on white paper, simple font) 22

Body Fit: Accommodate people with the widest range of body sizes, postures and movement abilities

Sufficient space between furniture, tables, etc. for maneuverability in spaces

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Perceptible Information

IKEA Assembly Instruction

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Adaptive products and simple alterations can prevent one-third of all home accidents

An Adaptive Product is any piece of equipment or device used to perform specific tasks, improve functional capabilities, and increase self-sufficiency.

Universal designs are places, products & systems that everyone can use.…with a disability, are left handed, are 8 or 80 years old, are short or tall.

Graphics demonstrate the use of products that are unfamiliar.

Utensils like Oxo Good Grips offer enhanced usability to all; with ergonomically designed handles and a better gripping surface without giving up a sense of "style."

These measuring spoons are easy to grip, color coded, and have large type and contrast.

Cut Resistant Gloves are made out of a light-weight man-made fiber that will protect you from a knife's blade

Universal Design can be as simple as a tool which allows you to single-handedly hold, cut and lift the ingredients for your snack tray.

Sometimes Universal Design is simply good, common sense design.

Personal Safety Alarm & Flashlight

Carry this portable compact alarm to assist in personal protection and safety.

Radio Shack

Pendant Remote - assistance at the touch of a button! Can dial up to four numbers or sound an alarm without having to be anywhere near the phone!

Glow Tape Achieves maximum glow at night to help individuals to locate needed articles and prevent nighttime accidents.

Voice Activated Switch can control the electricity for a lamp or fan, turning it on or off at the command of your voice

3 examples….

1.Jason making a difference and learning through real experiences!

1.Claire attending college!

1.Avery giving back to his community!


Disability is only one facet of an individual.


Documents

Universal Design for Education "More than 1 billion of us live with disabilities. We must remove all barriers that affect the inclusion and participation