Universal Design for Learning

UDL is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences that guides the development of flexible learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences.

Recognizing that the way individuals learn can be unique, the UDL framework, first defined by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) in the 1990s, calls for creating curriculum from the outset that provides:

• Multiple means of representation to give learners various ways of acquiring information and knowledge,
• Multiple means of engagement to tap into learners' interests, challenge them appropriately, and motivate them to learn.
• Multiple means of expression to provide learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know, and

Curriculum, as defined in the UDL literature, has four parts: instructional goals, methods, materials, and assessments. UDL is intended to increase access to learning by reducing physical, cognitive, intellectual, and organizational barriers to learning, as well as other obstacles.