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The number of students with disability enrolled in tertiary education has increased significantly in the last decade. This has prompted a move to make learning and teaching more accessible to all students. Universal Design for Learning, or UDL, can be used as a framework to guide tertiary educators in the planning and delivery of their courses. The effective implementation of UDL allows all students to access course materials, removing the need for some of them to actively seek support and disclose their disabilities. A rapid review was conducted to locate both theory and evidence to support the use of UDL at the tertiary level, as well as to seek guidance for its effective implementation. A total of 52 articles were included in the study and annotation was used for data extraction. Results indicated that UDL is well supported by theory, and studies revealed high satisfaction rates for UDL for both students and instructors. Implications for practice are suggested. As the current study was conducted at a university in Australia, the current research (which is largely from the United States) has been examined with the Australian university context in mind. [Author abstract]

Inclusive education in Australia has resulted in a concerted push for the differentiation of pedagogical teaching approaches by educators across Kindergarten to Year 12 (K-12) learning environments. Such approaches have been shown to meet a diverse range of learner needs found in today's classrooms. While progress is evident at the primary and secondary levels of education, implementing effective inclusive practices in higher education appears stagnant. Utilising the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in a fully online pre-service teacher training unit, multiple means of representation of the learning content and multiple means of engagement were explicitly incorporated into the online unit design. This approach aimed to proactively support the engagement of all students in an online teaching and learning environment. This study provides preliminary evidence that the application of UDL principles resulted in higher levels of student engagement and lower rates of student attrition. [Author abstract]

As distance education continues to increase, it is vital that postsecondary institutions contribute time and resources towards sustaining inclusive teaching practices that decrease barriers and increase opportunities for diverse student populations. This study examined faculty (n = 116) attitudes and actions surrounding online accommodations and inclusive teaching practices that were based on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles using the Inclusive Teaching Strategies Inventory-Distance Education (ITSI-DE) online survey instrument. A Pearson product moment correlation confirmed a statistically significant correlation between faculty attitudes and actions towards inclusive teaching practices. Next, a multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) affirmed statistically significant differences between faculty attitudes and actions towards inclusive teaching practices based on gender. The implications of this research and future research recommendations are offered.

Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 is underpinned by the provision of quality inclusive education for all young persons, including persons with disabilities. The universal design for learning (UDL) framework provides the basis for establishing an inclusive pedagogical learning environment in classrooms. However, implementing such an inclusive pedagogical framework continues to be profoundly challenging across all countries, including Australia. Teacher attitude is the most important construct in efforts to create inclusive educational contexts. The aim of this study was to examine secondary school teachers' attitudes towards the UDL framework in Australia. One hundred and twenty mainstream secondary classroom teachers in Sydney completed an online survey. The mean values and standard deviations of a self-designed UDL framework were calculated to examine teacher attitudes. Correlations and multiple regressions were conducted to verify the relationship between teachers' attitudes and their background variables. The main results indicated that Australian secondary school teacher attitudes towards the UDL framework were generally positive, although they still had some practical concerns, such as having inflexible ideas about how to provide instructions. The findings provide useful insights for developing professional teacher training to promote inclusive education, where the UDL framework is a lens for interpreting inclusive education. [Author abstract]

Educators and instructional designers have used the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework to guide their design of inclusive instruction for students with and without disabilities. Despite UDL having entered its 4th decade of development and research, there have been ongoing critiques of UDL for lacking clarity in definition, challenges with implementation, and insufficient evidence of its effectiveness. These critiques warrant further evaluation of UDL, especially with a focus on the theoretical underpinnings behind its conceptualization and implementation. Thus, we synthesized 32 peer-reviewed studies published between 1999 and 2023 that focused on UDL implementation in preK-12 educational settings and measured various aspects of student learning outcomes (e.g., cognitive, motivational, and behavioral). Specifically, we evaluated each study’s intervention or instructional design in terms of its alignment to UDL checkpoints, guidelines, and/or principles as well as existing theories of learning or instructional design. Results revealed several interrelated challenges that stymie UDL research, including the absence of explicit alignment between UDL checkpoints and intervention or instructional designs investigated in the extant literature, the uneven coverage of implemented checkpoints and corresponding guidelines, the overlap among multiple checkpoints and guidelines, and the lack of theoretical guidance regarding the design and implementation processes. Based on these findings, we provide recommendations for strengthening the research base for less frequently applied UDL checkpoints, recommendations for documenting checkpoints and relationships among checkpoints as indispensable components of UDL implementation, and directions for future research conducted via systematic UDL implementation guided by established theories.

This study investigates the role of neurodivergent (ND) students’ voices in shaping educational experiences and engagement in higher education (HE). There is a significant gap in the literature on incorporating ND students’ voices in curriculum design in HE. By integrating Universal Design for Learning (UDL) elements, this study aimed to enhance cognitive and emotional engagement among ND and neurotypical (NT) students. This study utilised a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods. Quantitative data were collected over 8 weeks, transitioning from traditional lecture-based teaching to UDL-enhanced sessions. Our findings reveal that UDL strategies benefit ND and NT students, improving their cognitive and emotional engagement. Qualitative results highlighted that traditional lectures often lacked engagement, while interactive activities were generally preferred. However, too much interactivity, particularly in group discussions, was sometimes overwhelming. ND students preferred anonymous, technology-driven interactions and practical tasks, allowing them to participate more effectively in learning. This study underlines the importance of incorporating ND student voices in curriculum design to create supportive and empowering educational environments for all students. By addressing the unique needs of ND students, this research contributes to the ongoing discourse on student voice in HE, emphasising the need for flexible and inclusive teaching practices that offer diverse learning preferences.

It seems appropriate to link the term accessibility back to the right of all people to access the opportunities promoted in/by contexts that should arise from universal perspectives, the only ones capable of predisposing accessibility by overcoming separations and categorizations. The intersection of relevant concepts--accomodation, accessibility, usability, desire, autonomy and orientation--can give direction and meaning to research in school contexts by aiming to investigate practices and by generating a reflection aimed at understanding the change that those same practices promote on everyone's learning. Keywords. Special education--Inclusion--Universal design for learning

This report examines the implementation of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework in various educational settings, with a focus on accessibility modifications and their impact on learning outcomes. A mixed-methods longitudinal approach was employed to gather data from 2,473 learners across 87 educational facilities. Assessing the extent to which the UDL framework encourages more inclusive and adaptive instructional designs, the framework supports flexible learning environments that prioritize embracing more inclusive and adaptive instructional approaches. The study found that institutions that fully engaged all three UDL framework principles, means of engagement, representation, and action/expression, recorded an increase of 37.4% in overall learner performance and 42.8% in the performance of disengaged learners. The study found a significant relationship between UDL implementation and positive outcome differences ( p  < 0.001) in UDL performance principles, which was substantially more pronounced in the case of engaged learners than in disengaged learners. Empirical evidence suggests that five critical factors, as revealed by qualitative data, facilitate successful integration: strong administrative support, ongoing professional development, comprehensive technology availability, collaborative pedagogy, and flexible data use. These empirically validated routes of action assist the application of UDL principles and broaden the integration of equitable access within the educational field. Within the context of participating institutions, UDL integration was associated with improved educational environments and appeared to increase access for students experiencing participation barriers. These findings suggest that flexible, inclusive UDL approaches may support improved access and attainment across diverse student populations in settings with adequate implementation support, though further research is needed to confirm generalizability across different educational contexts and timeframes.

After the return to on-campus teaching post-Covid, reports of student disengagement and low attendance are common and anxieties over the relationship between lecture recordings and attendance have re-emerged, leading some educators to remove recordings. To understand the potential impact of such decisions, this study explored how neurodivergent and disabled students use recordings using a qualitative survey approach. Reflexive thematic analysis emphasised the need for learning flexibility and questioned traditional lectures. Neurodivergent and disabled students raised concerns over accessibility, highlighting the crucial nature of recordings beyond attendance. For example, features such as pausing or speed adjusted were described as vital for managing learning among disabled and neurodivergent participants. Our findings do not support an uncritical view of lecture recordings. Participants discussed the self-discipline required for effective use and responses reflected prior concerns discussed in the literature regarding recordings leading to focusing on lectures to the detriment of other sources of information. However, despite challenges, we found multiple examples of students using recordings to maintain engagement as a successful self-regulated learner. In line with Universal Design for Learning, our findings support the provision of lecture recordings as an inclusive and accessible technology for all students, not just those with declared disabilities. All data and analysis code is available at https://osf.io/ue628/ .

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is currently one of the key frameworks supporting inclusive education, emphasising the need to design flexible learning environments and to reduce barriers that limit access to knowledge. At the same time, there is growing interest in forest education as a specific form of outdoor education grounded in direct contact with nature, experiential learning, and the strengthening of learners’ agency and autonomy. Despite clear conceptual overlaps between UDL and practices used in forest education, the relationships between these two approaches remain only partially explored in the literature. The aim of this article is to offer a conceptual analysis that identifies potential areas of integration between UDL principles and forest education practices. The paper discusses the theoretical foundations of UDL and the core assumptions of forest education, highlighting shared elements such as multisensory experience, learner agency, diversity of available forms of activity, flexibility of the learning environment, and the possibility of adapting activities to individual learner needs. On this basis, key components are identified that may inspire the design of accessible, engaging, and varied learning environments aligned with the principles of Universal Design for Learning.