Schools must offer a window through which all students can see the future they want for themselves. Students come to the classroom with a wide range of needs and helping them succeed is not always easy. Focus instruction on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and implementing both direct and student-driven instruction can help engage students, address diverse needs, and improve learning outcomes for all students.
Universal Design for Learning provides a framework for designing inclusive learning environments. Providing students with multiple ways to perceive, understand, and engage in learning gives them the opportunity to learn and display their knowledge in the way that works best for them as individuals. Research shows Students are more engaged when they connect learning to their strengths, abilities, preferences, and interests..
Creating an inclusive classroom requires applying UDL principles through hands-on strategies such as direct instruction, student-driven learning, and multimodal expression opportunities to engage students and foster success.
The Value of Direct Instruction in a Student-Driven Learning Environment
Student-driven learning environments encourage students to take ownership of their learning and connect it to their strengths and interests. Direct instruction plays an important role in explicitly teaching the skills students need to successfully explore learning on their own.
Research suggests that Student outcomes can improve when direct instruction is combined with practice opportunities along with timely feedback.. Direct instruction allows teachers to break content into manageable chunks with opportunities for practice and mastery before students advance to the next step. This reduces students' cognitive load, promotes success, and helps develop students' self-efficacy beliefs.
Educational technology tools can help integrate more flexible and interactive forms of direct instruction into a UDL framework to meet diverse student needs. Tools that provide visually engaging and interactive content, such as graphic organizers, peer collaboration opportunities, practice opportunities, and immediate feedback, not only support direct instruction but also make it easier for students to transition from teacher-directed work to work. student-led. Incorporating front-of-the-room screens and student devices allows students to move fluidly between consuming content, practicing with feedback, and sharing with the entire class.
Practice and demonstrate learning with multimodal responses
Giving students time to process their learning, practice it, and confirm their understanding with feedback from the teacher or their peers before presenting their solution to the class serves a dual purpose: it builds confidence and commitment in the student, and it allows the teacher to check understanding. Allowing students to rehearse their work in a multimodal approach (and receive support from their teacher or peers while practicing) not only supports different learning preferences, but also promotes creativity and critical thinking, while reducing student stress. students with social anxiety.
When developing activities and practice opportunities, students should be able to choose how they represent their learning. Going beyond written responses and including opportunities for audio, video, or image responses such as infographics or drawings allows students to choose the format that best aligns with their strengths, preferences, and needs. Digital manipulatives are another great way to allow students to physically interact with learning, test hypotheses, or visually represent and interact with abstract ideas.
Another strategy for checking understanding is to engage students with game-based activities. These activities encourage collaboration through small group work and peer learning and can help create a classroom where each student's voice and perspective can contribute to learning.
Digital group workspaces are a great way for students to work together, share ideas in real time, and take advantage of options that allow for multimodal responses. Because students are grouped digitally, students who are not physically present or who prefer to work alone can still collaborate and receive feedback from their peers, creating a truly inclusive learning environment.
By providing multiple ways for students to access content, express their understanding, and stay engaged, educators can create an environment where all students are more likely to succeed. Empowering students to progress at their own pace with immediate, actionable feedback ensures they understand the concept before moving on to the next, deepening learning and improving student outcomes. Mindful integration of UDL helps promote flexibility in the classroom, offering students the support they need to take ownership of their learning while also providing enough structure to ensure no one is left behind.
Whether through varied instructional approaches, different ways for students to demonstrate their learning, or opportunities for collaboration, a UDL mindset helps educators meet students where they are and guide them toward growth, preparing them for the future they imagine.
