Wednesday 12 June 2024: Online Program Sessions

This program outlines the running order and presentations for online attendees of the UDL Symposium.
Please note that the online program also includes live stream links from the Main Room of the In-Person conference. With the exception of the Welcome, Keynote Speaker and Panel Discussion, the live streams will be non interactive.

Please note: The Live Stream is via Teams and the same link is used for all the morning sessions and a second link is used for all the afternoon sessions from the Keynote onwards. If you are viewing back-to-back sessions you do not need to exit and re-enter. 
The Online sessions are Zoom meeting links and each link is unique. You will be admitted to the room at the beginning of each session. 

Dr Thomas Tobin, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Scaling Up with Universal Design for Learning . . . and How to Get Colleagues to Join You

Join us for a thought-provoking presentation that aims to challenge us to radically rethink how we approach the creation of educational materials and learning experiences. Far beyond just accommodating learners with disability, Thomas will guide us towards a broader framework and how adopting Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles can benefit all students.

Prepare to be inspired as Thomas’s keynote presentation reframes the way we think about inclusive education. Walk away with a renewed commitment to making your educational materials and practices truly inclusive, ensuring that every learner has the opportunity to succeed.

Thomas J. Tobin, PhD, MSLS, PMP, MOT, CPACC is a founding member of the Center for Teaching, Learning, & Mentoring at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as an internationally recognized scholar, author, and speaker on technology-mediated education. His books include

• Evaluating Online Teaching: Implementing Best Practices (2015).
• The Copyright Ninja (2017).
• Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone: Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education (2018).
• Going Alt-Ac: A Guide to Alternative Academic Careers (2020).
• UDL for FET Practitioners: Guidance for Implementing Universal Design for Learning in Irish Further Education and Training (2021).

Thomas will have signed copies of his book Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone: Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education available for sale during the Symposium for $30 AUD (cash or PayPal). He has also offered to sign participants existing copies if they bring them in.

Find him on various social media and at thomasjtobin.com.

Return to Keynote

Justin Wylie, Learning Designer, CQ University

Inclusive Learning Brainstorm: UDL ideas to remove barriers to learning

Scaling up UDL needs to be achievable and sustainable. Participants in this collaborative workshop will share ideas and perspectives to come up with realistic and effective strategies to remove barriers for diverse students in common university learning experiences.

Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) proposed that the social and cultural context of learning was how we actually make meaning and gain new understanding. In the spirit of social constructivism, this workshop will be a fun and collective process to generate UDL solutions to diverse learners’ requirements in a range of common tertiary contexts.

Share your ideas and experiences within your group to decide on achievable and sustainable strategies that will sustainably remove barriers to learning for students. The resulting digital resource will be shared with all participants to capture the session's outcomes.

Return to session 3

Mark Shelton, Sophia Holmes and Dr. Brigid Morrison

How ANYONE can make an engaging podcast in an hour!

The presentation provides an interactive “how to” experience relating to the development of a podcast. It addresses several pressing questions and challenges: 

• How can podcasts increase accessibility?
• In what ways do they foster engagement?
• How can students utilise podcasts to demonstrate knowledge and understanding?
• How can podcasts be utilised to efficiently include an authentic industry voice into online content?
• How can we overcome the barriers faced by educators with no prior experience or knowledge in using this tool?

Participants will learn about the diverse approaches to integrating podcasting into existing learning and assessment materials. From structuring content to designing interactive elements, the presentation offers a comprehensive overview to utilising podcasts for educational purposes.

The anticipated impact of this workshop is to enhance UDL by enabling educators to create podcasts that cater to the diverse needs and preferences of their learners, thereby fostering a more inclusive educational environment.

The highlight of the presentation is its interactive elements. Participants will actively engage in the process by making and submitting their own voice recordings in real time which will contribute to the live development of a podcast episode. Witnessing their contributions transform into a podcast, alongside a live demonstration of the editing process, offers a hands-on experience that enriches understanding and encourages future use of this tool in their own practice.

As a tangible output, a comprehensive how-to guide will be provided to all participants, empowering them to embark on their own podcasting journey. By equipping educators with the tools and knowledge needed to implement UDL through podcasts, this presentation aims to catalyse positive change in online education, making it more accessible and engaging for all.

Return to session 3

Elizabeth Hitches and Stuart Woodcock, Griffith University

Enacting UDL: Enabling universal asynchronous approaches to reach more learners

Tertiary education enrolments have tended to increase over time, and with that, the diversity of tertiary student cohorts. This amplifies the need to diversify teaching and learning to ensure all students are enabled to reach their full potential within an inclusive educational culture.

Students’ learning needs are now seen not only in the actual learning cycle, but also in their personal circumstances and how responsive the learning environment is to these. Inclusive equitable education is critical to offer a fair opportunity for all learners to succeed. The importance of a more universal design for learning approach is critical so that all students can access, engage, and express their understanding and application of theory to practice.

This presentation will outline a UDL approach at a tertiary institution course level for a large cohort of diverse learners across multiple campuses, and zoom in on one aspect of the course which will investigate the need for optimising the live recordings of classes in order to reach more learners. Moreover, this presentation will consider the ways in which UDL can be applied not only in universal synchronous ways, but also through asynchronous approaches. These aim to engage students within the learning, provide opportunities for them to express their understanding and receive formative feedback, and enable more inclusive equitable learning opportunities for students who are unable to engage in online classes in real-time or who benefit from the affordances of asynchronous engagement. The benefits of this approach will be presented by hearing the voices of the students through these approaches.

Other potential UDL approaches that have been recognised through this iterative process of change will also be discussed. 

Return to session 4

Dr Samantha Poulos, University of Sydney

Using the student voice to measure success and impact

This presentation will explore some of the ongoing projects we are working on at The University of Sydney and how we are using the data we have collected (focusing on the student voice through focus groups and surveys) as varied ways of measuring the success and impact of UDL implementation.

Return to session 4

Dianne Herft, RMIT University

UDL Strategies for Inclusive Animation 

This submission deeply explores integrating Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles into animation creation, focusing on inclusivity and accessibility for an enriching learning journey. By seamlessly integrating animation interactives and objects, the educational landscape becomes engaging and conducive to diverse learner profiles, significantly enhancing the accessibility of digital learning materials.

A central aspect of this approach is the meticulous consideration of colour contrast. Recognising its pivotal role in aiding individuals with varying degrees of visual impairment, adhering to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) ensures adequate contrast levels for optimal legibility and distinction. Prioritising accessibility in visual design makes the learning experience more inclusive and welcoming to learners with diverse needs.

Additionally, text size adjustments are implemented thoughtfully to enhance readability and comprehension for learners across the spectrum. Utilising clear fonts and appropriate spacing accommodates varying visual abilities, fostering an inclusive learning environment where every student can effectively engage with the material.

Furthermore, colour palette selection is meticulously guided by principles of accessibility and inclusivity. By consciously choosing colours accessible to individuals with colour vision deficiencies, over-reliance on colour alone to convey information is minimised. Incorporating visual cues like patterns or symbols ensures comprehension across diverse learner profiles, fostering an even more inclusive learning environment.

Beyond visual considerations, the commitment to accessibility extends to providing textual alternatives. Comprehensive transcripts accompany each animation, serving as invaluable resources for individuals with hearing impairments, aiding deeper understanding and retention of key concepts.
Exploration of alternative means, interactives, and experiences aims to provide learners with varied pathways to access information, catering to individual learning preferences.

In conclusion, integrating UDL principles into animation creation fosters inclusivity and accessibility, enriching the digital learning experience for all students. It ensures a truly inclusive and equitable educational environment, regardless of their abilities or learning preferences.

Return to session 5

Dr Polly Lai, Kelly Hill, Alison Bundock and Ruth Greenaway, Southern Cross University

Fostering Inclusive Learning: Southern Cross Model (SCM) Unit Site Standards 

This presentation introduces a set of standards that delineate specific criteria for the design, development and evaluation of online unit sites. The aim of the Southern Cross Model (SCM) Unit Site Standards is to ensure all units place students at the centre of the design process to foster a meaningful, inclusive educational experience for diverse individuals.   

To establish the underpinning structure for the standards, online learning theories such as Moore's (1989) Three Types of Interaction, Garrison and Akyol's (2013) Online Community of Inquiry, and Biggs' (2011) Constructive Alignment were adopted. 
Subsequently, three domains were identified: 

Domain 1: Teaching presence and communication  
Domain 2: Learning materials and activities  
Domain 3: Constructive alignment and assessments 

The criteria within each domain of the framework were established with reference to the ACODE Benchmarks, the TELAS Framework, Quality Matters and the three pillars of The Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Guidelines.

For instance, Domain 1 aligns with the first UDL principle as it advocates for establishing relationships through effective orientation and introductions. Domain 2 supports the UDL checkpoints 'Self Regulation' and 'Perception' as it highlights the significance of accessibility and providing opportunities for feedback and reflection. Domain 3 aligns with the third UDL principle as it prioritises learners’ goals and focuses on how the alignment of learning outcomes, activities and assessments can facilitate higher-order thinking skills and knowledge transfer. 

By basing the framework on established benchmarks in the sector, the SCM Unit Site Standards contribute to quality, accessibility, inclusivity and usability assurance within online learning environments. The implication is that every student has equitable opportunities to access and interact with the content, enabling them to shape their learning experiences and construct knowledge through interactions with content, educators and peers. 

Return to session 5

Max Jackson, Anthony Kickett, Marleigh Zada, Curtin University

Reinvigorating Nyungar Boodja: Collaboration and implementation of Nyungar and UDL pedagogies to rekindle desire for participatory action by Indigenous and non-Indigenous students 

To combat the colonial narratives constructed about Nyungar peoples and change perceptions of history in Boorloo (Perth), our Nyungar Culture and Identity unit privileges relational ways of working to hold students' development in a culturally secure manner. Implementing our traditional learning methodologies alongside carefully considered Universally Designed Learning principles allows students to understand their position in history and how we can begin to move forward with positive, inclusive change in modern Australia.

Our 7-day intensive unit sometimes presents challenges with sharing knowledge with new learners, however, we respectfully utilise community members, local NAIDOC events, a range of Aboriginal lecturers, and of course, Nyungar Boodja (Country) herself to assist with the colonial load we undertake in the Indigenous education space. Reinvigorating the Boorloo CBD and surrounding locations with an understanding that our city is still Country promotes complete engagement in both Country and classroom content while challenging historical and present-day understandings of the strength of Nyungar peoples and the validity of our practices.

Our processes of learning on-Country, representing the diverse voices and perspectives of Aboriginal people who live in the South-West of Western Australia and encouraging students to engage in courageous conversations and critical self-reflection are key to the success of the learner. By weaving Nyungar and Western methods of knowledge acquisition and assessment, students are completely immersed in the inclusivity of the third space and their inquisitive nature flourishes, proving significant growth in the individual mindset of each student, and provoking further curiosity and desire to genuinely engage with Nyungar peoples and the local environment we all call ‘home’. This unit produces students who have an active role in this knowledge sharing journey post-completion of the unit in their own respective communities, as well as a desire to continue learning about and engaging with Nyungar boodja and her peoples.

Return to session 2

Tanya Allan, Trina Bianchini, TAFE SA, Naomi McGrath and John J Fardoulis, TAFE NSW

UDL-LevelUp: Implementing inclusive practices in online courses 

As education providers, we regularly assess and adjust instructional strategies to better meet the needs of learners and commit to ongoing improvement in inclusive education. In supporting this, we must build capability solutions and upskill all staff in learner diversity and inclusive teaching and learning practices.

TAFE South Australia and TAFE New South Wales have partnered to co-develop an online UDL progression unit that highlights varying levels of topics contextualised to each organisation's inclusive teaching and learning frameworks. The project team is developing a concept unit in Moodle where equivalent topics have been produced four times, improving the design by levelling up throughout the unit. The levels build on each other to highlight the progression to a universally designed online course.

The levels are: (0) Start with a simple design. (1) Meet accessibility standards. (2) Build on usability and communication standards. (3) Enhance with Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Improvements throughout the levels will be noted with the addition of an inclusive design analysis.

The presentation will explain how the teams collaborated and how each project team contextualised the unit for their organisation. The UDL progression unit will be used as a capability tool for staff to self-assess and reflect on their inclusive practices and resource development. It is hoped this unit will become a valuable companion for staff embarking on their UDL journey, guiding them towards creating more inclusive and effective teaching and learning materials.

Return to session 1

AJ Penrose, RMIT

Practical applications of accessible and diverse UDL techniques 

RMIT Library Digital Learning is a small, skilled, technical team of digital learning resource specialists who develop new learning resources for a diverse and broad university-wide audience. We are also tasked with managing large collections of legacy resources that require retrofitting accessibility improvements.
 
Our team also acts in an advisory capacity to assist others to create digital media content to the same standards, and to showcase our best-practice examples. Skills and knowledge in our team and the wider Library are retained through our ways of working, documentation practices and information sharing across teams and units.
 
All new resources that we develop are inclusive by design. In this short presentation we will share our methods and processes for creating quality and engaging digital learning resources that incorporate accessibility and diversity right from the beginning of the development process.
 
Some of our methods and practices that have proved to be successful include:

• Understanding the audience and undertaking detailed research for needs and requirements.
• Keeping up to date with developments in the field.
• Documenting what we do so it is repeatable and shareable with others (creating a knowledge-base).
• Following the principle that successful, accessible websites can also be aesthetically pleasing.
• Using different forms of testing and evaluation within and outside of our team.
• “Launch before it's ready” – an agile and modular approach to design and development to deliver what we can, when we can and continuously improve. This allows different kinds of users to review our resources, confirming that our concepts are sound, and that implementation is successful.

The presentation will cover three examples of recent projects developed by our team (including an award-winning OER) and how we have successfully incorporated UDL techniques to create popular digital learning resources.

Return to session 2

Dr Helen Black, Dr Annette Sartor and Dr Nicole Bridges, Western Sydney University

Infecting our university with UDL, one academic at a time!

Three colleagues from different schools, starting a journey from small beginnings of taking one subject in UDL the Master of Education (Leadership) degree, towards an inclusive culture at our institution. We envisage UDL and inclusivity to be the new pandemic and want to ‘infect’ the institution one colleague at a time moving from ineffective and exclusionary traditional teaching to more adaptive, flexible, and comprehensive approaches, to engage and empower different types of learners, and to embrace what they bring to the tertiary experience.  Inclusion is a journey, not a destination, and we aim to build on scholarly expertise, and reflective teaching experiences to spread an inclusive culture through sharing UDL approaches to colleagues.  

We will initiate conversations with colleagues about inclusive language and question unconscious bias, by sharing resources and techniques for building an inclusive working and learning environment on campus and online.  Challenges are anticipated in disrupting the status quo, as many academics are defensive about pedagogy and subject matters in which they are the expert. Even for those staff who support and understand the importance of UDL, academics are time poor, and research is often prioritised over curriculum rejuvenation.  We hope to overcome barriers by sharing our experiences and showcasing the benefits of UDL to all students, by taking a proactive approach to meet diverse learners at the design stage.

In our session, we are hoping to draw from the expertise of a collective audience to provide advice, examples and share strategies that have worked in other institutions. This will assist us in our quest to lead by example in demonstrating curriculum renewal and cultural change at a broader level. We will showcase how to adapt and build flexibility in learning materials, active learning activities, and effective assessments that lead to greater student engagement and success.   

Return to session 1

Dr Tracey Ahern, Tracey Gooding and Dr Narelle Biedermann, James Cook University

Linking CONNECT and UDL to support postgraduate online learners

Online learning courses have become increasingly popular in higher education in recent years, offering busy professionals more learning opportunities for career development and upskilling. However, these environments can be isolating, and difficult to engage in particularly if the course is not intentionally designed and delivered to promote a sense of connection, community and belonging.  In Australia despite student enrolments in online courses rising faster than those offered on-campus, retention rates for online courses remain noticeably lower. The published literature suggests building a student’s sense of belonging can enhance student engagement, success, and retention in online learning. 

Academics from James Cook University have developed a framework to guide teaching staff to build social presence and connectedness in 100% online learning courses. The CONNECT framework, a set of practical, evidence-based strategies used to create a supportive environment and promote a greater sense of connectedness in online postgraduate nursing courses was recently published by the authors. In this presentation, we will discuss CONNECT, with reference to a range of practical strategies used to promote social presence and connectedness in online learning at the course level, while also demonstrating links to the principles of universal design for learning (UDL). In alignment with UDL, diverse methods to engage, challenge, and motivate learners in a way that nurtures educational and professional growth are recognised as key elements for creating quality learning experiences for our online student cohort. 

Testimonials from students will also be included in this presentation providing another dimension to demonstrate how the strategies used by staff can create an environment in which students feel a sense of belonging, while building their educational and professional capabilities in the field of nurse leadership, nursing education and advanced nursing practice.

Return to session 6

Dr Jacquie Tinkler, Dr Ella Dixon and Gene Hodgins, Charles Sturt University

UDL, Technology, and Disability Support: “We influence UDL by being around the table...” 

Increasing numbers of students with cognitive disabilities and mental health conditions are accessing higher education each year, yet little is known about their educational technology needs or the extent to which UDL approaches impact their learning success.

This session presents the findings from a research project that explored how digital technologies and UDL approaches are used by university Disability Support Officers (DLOs) and Managers (DSMs) to assist online students with mental health conditions. The findings from the qualitative data gathered from nine Disability Support professionals will be presented and discussed. Our findings showed that the move to online learning during the COVID pandemic influenced how digital technology use for learning was considered, and the awareness and integration of digital technologies in ways that could assist students with disabilities became more widespread.

However, in the context of Disability Support Services, digital technologies were still often provided according to the needs of each student, due to licence limitations and the support model that is based on providing individual accommodations. Concerns that technology might be overused to the detriment of students’ learning, relationship-building, and study skills were also expressed including concerns that students with mental illnesses ‘needed to learn’ particular personal skills that technology was seen as replacing.

The role of Disability Support Officers and Managers as active advocates for students with disabilities and their need for accessible and inclusive use of technology across their university will also be discussed. Finally, how these findings can inform and guide the future direction of technology-enhanced UDL implementation in universities will be presented.

Return to session 6

Dr Helen Black, Western Sydney University

Developing an inclusive curriculum and teaching team culture using UDL

Together with a very passionate team of adjunct academics, we are making inclusivity explicit in the learning environment, as our common goal, and we are committed to doing better for our students.

After stripping back the existing and traditional curriculum to its core learning objectives, we have rebuilt taking care to scaffold only relevant topics with a universal design framework to minimise barriers to access and engagement.  We have incorporated active learning and student reflection on their own learning processes to provide a feedback loop to the teaching team. In addition, the teaching team are keeping reflective journals to help identify any remaining barriers so we can continue to improve in real time.

We have identified, and removed, unconscious bias and hidden curriculum in subject content and structures, using UDL principles we have removed barriers to learning, engagement, and developed a deliberately inclusive curriculum.

We have built an academic team culture of inclusivity, accountability, and continuous improvement.

We are motivated and confident but still have some challenges such as some university and professional body assessment policies, balancing academic integrity with flexibility and timely feedback, potential to overwhelm some learners with choice. Some accounting content has been more challenging to make fully inclusive and we are yet to gain buy-in of other academics to adopt authentic inclusive practices.  We hope that when we have solid results to showcase, we can be persuasive and support others to be embrace UDL and be more inclusive.

Return to session 7