Schools should provide a window through which all students can see the future they want for themselves. Students arrive in the classroom with a diverse range of needs, and helping them succeed isn’t always straightforward. Centering instruction in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and implementing both direct and student-driven instruction can help engage learners, 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, comprehend and engage with the learning allows them the opportunity to learn and showcase their knowledge in a way that works best for them as individuals. Research shows students are more engaged when they connect the learning to their strengths, abilities, preferences and interests.
Creating an inclusive classroom requires applying UDL principles through practical strategies like direct instruction, student-driven learning and opportunities for multimodal expression to engage learners 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 skills students need to successfully explore learning on their own.
Research suggests that student outcomes can improve when direct instruction is combined with opportunities for practice paired with timely feedback. Direct instruction allows teachers to break content into manageable chunks with opportunities for practice and mastery before learners progress to the next step. This reduces the cognitive load for students, promotes success and helps develop student self-efficacy belief.
Edtech tools can help integrate more flexible, interactive forms of direct instruction in a UDL framework to support diverse student needs. Tools that provide visually engaging and interactive content, such as graphic organizers, opportunities for peer collaboration, practice opportunities and immediate feedback, not only support direct instruction but also make it easy for students to transition from teacher-led to student-driven work. Incorporating both front-of-room displays and student devices allows students to move fluidly between content consumption, practice with feedback and whole-class sharing.
Practicing and Demonstrating Learning With Multi-Modal Responses
Allowing students time to process the learning, practice it and confirm their understanding with teacher or peer feedback before presenting their solution in front of the class serves a dual purpose: It builds learner confidence and engagement, and it enables the teacher to check for understanding. Allowing students to rehearse their work with a multi-modal approach—and receive support from their teacher or peers while they are practicing—not only supports different learning preferences but also promotes creativity and critical thinking while reducing stress for students with social anxiety.
When crafting activities and practice opportunities, students should have a choice in how they represent their learning. Going beyond written responses and including opportunities for audio responses, videos or imagery 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 the learning, test hypotheses or visually represent and interact with abstract ideas.
Another strategy to check for understanding is to engage students with game-based activities. These activities foster collaboration through small group work and peer learning and can help create a classroom where every 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 tap into options that allow for multi-modal responses. Because students are grouped digitally, students who are not physically present or who prefer to work on their own, 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 have a better chance to succeed. Empowering students to progress at their own pace with immediate and actionable feedback ensures students have grasped the concept before moving on to the next one, deepening the learning and improving student outcomes. The conscious integration of UDL helps promote flexibility in the classroom, offering students the support they need to take ownership of their learning while still 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 envision.
