Interested in the UDL: Learning Spaces Idea Kit for Higher Ed but unsure of how to facilitate its use?

University-Wide Strategy Development:

At the broadest level, the Idea Kit can be used to help inspire strategies for enhancing learning access for all students across many areas of campus operations. Since many incoming students are not aware of the services available to them for learning accommodations, campuses can benefit from using the cards as a means of thinking about the new student user experience, and better engaging new students to campus-wide support services that are available to them. This application can also help identify opportunities for various support service departments and programs to establish stronger connections and synergies among one another. (The orange and yellow categories best apply to this application.)

College/Departmental Strategy Development:

Many campuses are working on specific UDL implementation strategies within specific colleges or departments. Use select cards from the Idea Kit to spur ideas about ways to foster better UDL support across an entire department; how to help faculty collaborate and share resources more effectively; how to integrate UDL implementation efforts that may be happening independently. Pre-sort the cards based on relevance to your area of implementation and use these cards with stakeholders to consider ways that space can amplify your implementation efforts.

Space Design:

Any project related to new construction or renovation of learning space should be passed under the lens of UDL. Based on the project in consideration, pre-sort cards relative to that project scope and use these cards with stakeholder teams to help establish strategies and priorities for improved learning access and flexible space design. The Idea Kit is a great means of establishing a common language among educators, administrators, facilities personnel, purchasing personnel, students, and design professionals.

Student Engagement:

Coupled with a survey tool, the Idea Kit can help support a robust audit of student experience related to UDL. Use the Idea Kit to engage with students via surveys, town hall forums, round tables, or student organization meetings. Use the cards to help students think about their own campus experience and listen to the ideas that resonate with them.

Faculty Training:

Centers for Teaching and Learning are great organizations with which to utilize the Idea Kit. Approach each card with a “What if we had…?” statement. For example, “What if we had…multiple options for viewing visual displays?” Let these “what if?” statements lead faculty into developing their own creative solutions to learning access. Using the Idea Kit with faculty is a great way to instill design thinking among faculty as they explore ways to better deliver instruction to reach all their students.

Endowments and Alumni Organizations:

Use the Idea Kit to help inspire donors. For highly engaged donors, let them sort the cards and prioritize what’s important to them. For others, borrow the ideas to help elevate the conversation about the importance of learning access and creating empowered life-long learners.