Principle 4. Universal Design for Learning: Summary and Rationale
Design and deliver all course elements for maximum accessibility to give every student equitable opportunities for success.
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) recognizes that students have a diverse range of abilities and experiences, and provides multiple means of learning and expression for these students. By prioritizing accessibility in a course, instructors design their course from the vantage point of multiple perspectives, creating learning experiences that can engage a diverse group of students.
Research on student learning demonstrates that “multi-modal access” helps to improve learning outcomes for all students. Multi-modal access essentially means providing several pathways to access course material. By using Universal Design for Learning, all students can benefit from increased access to their course content, including many who are not registered to receive formal accommodations through the Disability Resource Center (DRC). Stigma, cost, and numerous other factors are barriers to registering with the DRC. As the COVID-19 pandemic has shown, many people without impairment of any kind become “disabled” when their environments are suddenly rendered less accessible. Practicing UDL in courses means making no assumptions about the learner’s abilities or experiences and avoiding biases in methods of expression. Following the principles of UDL, instructors go “beyond compliance” with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and aim to provide the maximum access to the greatest number of their students.
- Work with the MSU IT Dept, DRC, and other campus entities to stay current on “assistive technology” and accessible formats. UDL strategies and technologies are constantly evolving.
- Select accessible materials from the start, including software, apps and tools that supplement the delivery of course content.
- Engage responsively and respectfully with official accommodations by working with students to support their needs for student success. Most accommodations provided (i.e. 2x time on tests) set a minimum standard for instructors, and should prompt instructors to engage directly with learners about their needs.
- Make course materials accessible. For text-based documents, such as PDFs, assure they are accessible to screenreaders. Use captions for all instructional video and audio content. Provide alternative information for any visual content (for example, audio or text-based descriptions of visual elements).
- Consider utilizing a range of options for students to demonstrate course mastery. Avoid bias towards only one mode of expression (i.e. only accepting written work). Consider oral submissions, video submissions, class presentations, and other modes of demonstrating learning mastery.
- Promote the use of American Sign Language (ASL), Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART), and Audio Description (AD) in all MSU sponsored presentations, events, activities.
Audio description example, Bridge Multimedia example
Digital Accessibility FAQs, from Montclair’s Digital Accessibility Initiative
Mapping Access – strategies for simply and effectively designing for accessible learning.
Explore Access – disability community recommended tools for promoting disability and inclusion.
Humanizing Online Teaching – teaching practices for equity and social justice and our collective experiences of online and hybrid teaching. It is not centered on the technical aspects of online teaching but rather pedagogical practices that promote care for the whole student and class collective.
Universal Design for Learning – guidelines, lesson plans, and rubrics for designing for accessibility.
Creating Accessible Educational Resources – the National Center for AERs has a host of guidelines, resources for teaching and rubrics.
All Technology is Assistive — Sarah Hendren makes the case that designing for disabilities actually is a way to create better designs for everyone in this thoughtful essay on object design that has implications for teaching design.
Applications of Universal Design – University of Washington, DO-IT program.
Baglieri, S., and Lalvani, P. (2020). Undoing Ableism: Teaching about Disability in K-12 Classrooms (2020). Routledge. * Montclair State University authors.
Chtena, N. (2016, Dec. 13). Teaching Tips For an UDL-Friendly Classroom: Advice for implementing strategies based on Universal Design for Learning. Inside Higher Education.
Doyle, N. (2020, April 29). “We Have Been Disabled: How The Pandemic Has Proven The Social Model Of Disability.” Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/drnancydoyle/2020/04/29/we-have-been-disabled-how-the-pandemic-has-proven-the-social-model-of-disability/#49b0e4912b1d
Edelberg, E. (2019, June). “Deep Dive: How Audio Description Benefits Everyone.” 3playermedia.com. https://www.3playmedia.com/blog/deep-dive-how-audio-description-benefits-everyone/#:~:text=Audio%20description%20also%20provides%20a,tied%20down%20in%20one%20place.
Guest, K. R. P. & Jack, J. (2017, Nov. 27). When You Talk about Banning Laptops, You Throw Disabled Students under the Bus. Huffpost. Retrieved 2 August 2022 from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/when-you-talk-about-banning-laptops-you-throw-disabled_b_5a1ccb4ee4b07bcab2c6997d?ncid=engmodushpmg00000004
Kleege, G. & Wallen, S. (2015). “Audio Description as a Pedagogical Tool.” Disability Studies Quarterly, 35(2). https://ezproxy.montclair.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsdoj&AN=edsdoj.14b646439cc0449d92befd32d1ec9656&site=eds-live&scope=site
Meyer, A., Rose, D. H., & Gordon, D. (2014). Universal design for learning: Theory and practice. CAST Professional Publishing.
Novak, K. (2022). UDL Now! A Teacher’s Guide to Applying Universal Design for Learning. (3rd edition). CAST Professional Publishing.
Womack, A., Blanchard, A., Wang, C., & Jessee, M. (2015). Accessible syllabus. Retrieved March 18, 2021, from https://www.accessiblesyllabus.com/
For more information or help, please email the Office for Faculty Excellence or make an appointment with a consultant.
Last Modified: Tuesday, July 1, 2025 4:03 pm
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