Universal Design for Learning

Presuming Competence By Design: A tutorial for systems, environment, curricular, and materials design in learning systems

Requirements

Learner Differences – An Expanded Concept of Differences

There are several concepts pushing on our definitions of learners.  From brain research that better exposes what’s firing and not firing in a person’s brain during learning activities, to market forces such as an aging population that is increasingly engaged with work and learning longer than previously in history, to increased awareness of background and cultural diversity – our notion of “difference” has expanded.  Our learning environments, however, have not necessarily expanded with that awareness.

The limitations of our designs come from our own mental limitations of how we think about learners.  The following explanation provides a visual explanation for thinking about learners in more diverse terms.  Notice that you can download an audio (mp3) or iPod video format of the presentation.