With Last week being National AccessAbility Week in Canada, the topic of Inclusive Design in classrooms was a perfect opportunity to initiate the talk on accessibility. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) specifically pertains to the framework for inclusion in the classroom. However, Universal Design isn’t just practiced in the classroom but can be applied to many different applications, one being engineering. Examples of this can be seen in our day to day life such as, the example from class, curb cuts which allow wheelchairs to move from raised sidewalks to the road. In this post I will look at two other examples of universal design in engineering, lever door handles and video captions, and how aspects from these examples can be applied to UDL. 

Lever door handles can be used without “tight grasping, pinching, or twisting of the wrist”[1] which literally and figuratively opens doors for people who have arm, wrist or hand impairments. This requirement is specified in the American Disability Act (ADA) for businesses to make their doors accessible to all. Some may view the type of door handle as a means for someone to exhibit their style or aesthetics however to some door handles can be viewed as an obstacle, a denial to be let in. This is why when incorporating UDL educators must look from their students perspective and create an open line of communication so that students are comfortable in discussing the challenges they may face, no matter how small or big they may be. Small habits such as describing objects by their shape rather than colour to include those with colour blindness, these small changes are easy for educators to adopt and can make the difference of a student feeling included and welcomed in a classroom. 

Video captions is a tool that displays the dialogue/sounds of a video in text form so that the dialogue can be read concurrently with the video. This tool was created with the goal of making videos accessible to people with hearing impairments. However this tool has also benefited those who are learning english and people who may be watching the video in an environment where they can’t hear the sound. 

When creating inclusive lesson plans it may feel as though it is additional planning to only accommodate a small proportion of the population, maybe only one student of the class. However, as stated in this 2017 report by Statistics Canada, 22% of Canadians have at least one disability[2]. This means not using universal design in the classroom could mean almost a quarter of the class being excluded. Additionally, the video captions example shows us that often Universal Designs not only benefit that one individual but every student in the class. Therefore incorporating UDL not only creates accessible opportunities for the individuals who need it, it increases the learning experiences for every student.

References:

[1] “Opening Doors to Everyone.” adata.org. https://adata.org/factsheet/opening-doors-everyone (accessed Jun. 9, 2021)

[2] “New Data on Disability in Canada, 2017,” Statistics Canada, Canada, Nov. 28, 2018. Accessed: Jun. 9, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-627-m/11-627-m2018035-eng.htm