Saturday, September 24, 2011

UDL and a traditional classroom setting

I have read so many articles and listened to multiple podcasts, interviews, etc. about UDL and I have one question - Has anyone seen a classoom where many of the principles of UDL are implemented across content areas or across single assignment? I am eager to see what this looks like/implemented on a grander scale either in a progressive or traditional classroom.

I recently in my student teaching assignment did an assignment that was about blogging online/posting comments in response to a video of the first Joe Louis & Max Schmeling fight. The kids watched a u-tube vide of the fight and had to post 3 comments (their own and 2 responses) about the fight. This is all part of unit (Read Aloud of a possible Newberry book) that takes place in the 1930s. I was actually surprised that most students had posted and began a string of comments on the same day the assigment was made. They asked during the read aloud if they were going to watch a video and were excited to know that was part of the assignment.

Every few days, I post an assignment online, typically having them respond to images, videos or sound, related to the story/the book. But this really only addresses the participation option - we discuss the book/characters in class. Well maybe it also addresses both the expression and presentation option - because I usually highlight /change fonts of certain concepts along with having those who can express themselves orally and others express themselves online. We also recently did an essay on sacred spaces where they ended up creating a sketch and doing a torn paper collage of their own sacred space for the unit on world religions. Is this all that needs to be done to qualify/meet the principles of UDL?

I wish in my daughter's classroom this was done. She is a struggling writer and tends to be more of a visual/auditory learner. All I have seen in the public school she attends is the option of doing the summer projects in different formats (cereal box vs mobile) or spelling exercises (making a bookmark vs doing color pencils). Creative options, yes, but truly UDL...I'm not quite sure. The future is curriculum done all online -I'm not quite sure more Math programs like EDM/TERC aren't available online for students to be able to manipulate and interact with Math at their own pace, in a more visual manner with the ability to alter the content for students.

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