Handbook of Universal Design for Learning: Research and Practice(Elgar Handbooks in Education)

About the Book

This vital Handbook explores Universal Design for Learning (UDL), a flexible framework that helps educators design learning environments that address the diverse needs of all students. James Basham and K. Alisa Lowrey bring together global experts in sociology, neuroscience, education and design to assess how UDL can transform education.

Contributing authors explore how UDL’s principles of engagement, representation and expression can be applied across educational contexts from K-12 through to teacher training. They illustrate the ways in which UDL can reduce systemic barriers and encourage designing for learner differences from the start of one’s educational journey, rather than retrofitting lessons after challenges arise. This Handbook addresses pressing issues in the field, including the need for stronger research evidence and implementation, drawing from cutting-edge research in neuroscience, education, and design fields. Focussing on technological innovations such as AI, VR and digital tools, chapters examine practical case studies to emphasize UDL’s potential to promote equity and accessibility.

The Handbook of Universal Design for Learning is an essential resource for students and academics in inclusive education, particularly those focused on instructional design approaches. It will also enlighten educators, educational policymakers and instructional designers developing inclusive educational policy and practice.

Table of Contents:
Contents Preface: A tale of two UDL researchers xv An introduction to the Handbook of Universal Design for Learning: Research and Practice 1 James D. Basham and K. Alisa Lowrey PART I EXPANDING AND EXAMINING UDL 1 The UDL research we have is not the research we need 10 Dave L. Edyburn 2 Universal Design for Learning in the age of artificial intelligence 25 James D. Basham, Angelica Fulchini Scruggs and Yerin Seung 3 Crip methods: Universal Design for Learning in qualitative research 38 Laura N. Sarchet and Samantha G. Daley 4 Reporting on Universal Design for Learning in research 61 Taehyun T. Kim, James D. Basham and Yerin Seung 5 Universal Design for Learning Observation Measurement Tool: Translation and cross-cultural adaptation into French and Italian 81 Laura Rusconi and Daniela Gäng-Pacifico PART II UDL ACROSS CONTEXTS AND POSSIBILITIES 6 Universal Design for Learning: What does the law require? 93 MitchellL. Yell, DavidF. Bateman and K.Alisa Lowrey 7 How UDL can support faculty and students in low-resourced settings: Findings from a mixed methods study in Liberia 108 Nicholas J. Hoekstra and Hayley Niad 8 Preparing for different futures in inclusion: Framing the growth of the UDL momentum in the K-12 and postsecondary sectors from the perspective of sustainable development 133 FredericFovet 9 From recommendation to reality: Examining UDL in state education policies 151 K. Alisa Lowrey, Cassandra H. Williams and L. Denise Williams 10 The pedagogy of possibility: UDL as iteration, critique, and creation 169 Jose Blackorby and Elizabeth Hartmann 11 UDL: A Trojan horse for digital accessibility 188 CynthiaCurry, MindyJohnson andAllisonPosey PART III DESIGNING WITH INTENTION: UDL AND INCLUSIVE PRACTICE 12 UDL as a process: Intentional and inclusive instructional design for various learning environments 210 AnyaS. Evmenova and KavitaRao 13 Applying principles of UDL 3.0 to support the inclusion of learners with complex support needs 223 JenniferA. Kurth and MeganGross 14 The current state of research: Examining Universal Design for Learning and intellectual disability 235 K.Alisa Lowrey 15 UDL and innovative technologies 247 SeanJ. Smith, AdamCarreon, SamanthaR. Goldman and BridgetC. Smith 16 Environmental design for UDL 262 MichaelC. Ralph, DavidReid PART IV UDL IN HIGHER EDUCATION AND TEACHER EDUCATION 17 Building expert learners through goal setting and formative feedback 292 SusieL. Gronseth, ThamarSolorio, ManuelMontes-y-Gómez, HugoJ. Escalante and IoannisA. Kakadiaris 18 The integration of UDL and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning 300 and EricJ. Moore 19 Application of UDL in higher education and teacher education 311 AleksandraK. Hollingshead and KaeCeeM. Holden 20 The intersection of supports: Accommodations and UDL for student success 327 JordanShurr and HaleyClark 21 Equipping UDL trainers for change: Skills that support equitable practice 336 LouiLord Nelson and JingrongXie 22 UDL exists in the wild: Where and how we find UDL in higher education 347 CassandraH. Williams and SarahMazur 23 Conclusion: Designing forward—The future of Universal Design for Learning 358 JamesD. Basham and K.Alisa Lowrey

About the Author :
Edited by James D. Basham, Professor of Special Education, Department of Special Education, University of Kansas and K. Alisa Lowrey, Professor of Special Education, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Indiana University, USA

Review :
‘This Handbook offers a panoramic and generative synthesis of 25 years of scholarship, tracing Universal Design for Learning (UDL) from its early CAST origins to its current status as a global framework shaping instructional design, policy, and technological innovation. The editors craft a historically grounded narrative showing how UDL evolved alongside shifts in digital ecosystems, accessibility movements, and research in learning sciences. The text demonstrates how UDL has become a shared design language for educators, technologists, researchers, and architects committed to building environments structured for learner variability from the outset.

‘Basham and Lowrey offer a renewed view of the Universal Design for Learning framework as a globally-recognized approach. Theirs is a call to researchers and faculty to investigate and promote UDL implementation as an iterative design process that can reshape higher education.’ ‘This Handbook offers both a thoughtful curation of experienced, cross-discipline perspectives, and a detailed historical evaluation of UDL’s decades of impact on the process and practice of learning. I deeply appreciate the commitment of the editors and authors working to sustain the sheer force of a really good idea.’