UDL in Action: The What, the Why and the How
In case you missed it, ADCET’s inaugural Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Symposium, held on the 5th and 7th of September 2023 was a great success. As previously promised, all of the presentations are now available to view on the ADCET website.
The UDL in Action: The What, the Why and the How Symposium represented ADCET’s ongoing commitment to building capacity in the tertiary education sector around universal design for learning, an important learning and teaching framework for diverse learners and particularly those with disability. The Symposium brought together international and national leaders, academics, learning designers and professionals in a program with something for everyone, from beginners through to experts.
Keynote speaker Dr. Sheryl Burgstahler from the University of Washington, began with the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ of universal design for learning. Having worked in the UDL space for decades, she distilled the basics and gave practical applications and resources to aid people in getting started. Day two keynote speaker, Dr. Thomas Tobin from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, focused on the ‘how’ of UDL, making it easier to create impactful, incremental changes, and demonstrated what an exemplar online UDL presentation looks like.
“I learnt so much from Tom Tobin. The content of his presentation was excellent, but more than that, I learnt a tremendous amount from the way he presented – he modelled UDL best practice. I am so inspired to do better as a teacher after participating in that session. I can’t wait for the recording so I can watch it again.” – VET provider
Videos, transcripts and other supporting materials from the symposium are all now available on the ADCET website.
UDL is a marathon, not a sprint. You can engage with ADCET and continue on this learning journey in many ways, including through its various online resources, an eLearning module and the organisation’s community of practice. Additionally, ADCET can be contacted directly by email at admin@adcet.edu.au.