ADCET UDL Symposium: UDL LevelUp - Implementing inclusive practices in online courses
Online presentation
Tanya Allan, Trina Bianchini, TAFE SA, Naomi McGrath and John J Fardoulis, TAFE NSW
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.
This presentation explained 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.
Presenters
As a Teaching & Learning Specialist in the Academic Development directorate at TAFE SA, Tanya Allan (she/her) is responsible for providing expert advice and leadership to education workgroups across the institute. With the Technology Enhanced Learning portfolio, Tanya engages with education staff in understanding and applying proven practices in delivering training and assessment using technology that positively impacts students enrolled at TAFE SA. Having been an educator for over 15 years, Tanya loves connecting with other passionate educators and fostering opportunities for collaboration.
Trina Bianchini (she/her) is employed at TAFE SA as a Teaching and Learning Specialist with a special portfolio of Accessibility and Inclusive Education. Trina provides leadership to teaching programs through quality and innovation to deliver positive student experiences and successful outcomes. Trina is a passionate advocate of Universal Design for Learning as it drives principles of accessibility, usability and quality learning design addressing digital content and effective facilitation methods utilising digital tools. Trina is a member of a UDL in Tertiary Education Community of Practice with members from across Australia/New Zealand and a lead in the TAFE SA Co-Design Network who was tasked with designing and implementing an Inclusive Teaching and Learning framework at TAFE SA.
John J Fardoulis BCom (UWS) DipCompProgTech (CDI) MACS Snr CP IP3P (he/him) makes significant contributions to promoting inclusive education and championing the rights of learners and staff with disability at TAFE NSW. As the Lead Universal Design in the Inclusive Design team, John researches and analyses new approaches to universal design and provides recommendations to influence the accessibility, UDL, and usability of the teaching, learning, and assessment products. As an accessibility ambassador across all departments in the NSW government, John helps develop digital accessibility expertise, shares knowledge and works to improve accessibility across all services. John is a member of the UDL in Tertiary Education Community of Practice.
Naomi McGrath (she/her) is a Project Manager, Inclusive Design within the Product & Quality Group at TAFE NSW. Naomi collaborates with stakeholders to embed inclusivity as an integral part of the TAFE NSW Educational Quality Framework by outlining the obligations and considerations for all staff when developing and delivering learning and assessment resources. Naomi supports inclusive education at TAFE NSW by building awareness and capability and supporting staff to ensure products and services are accessible and inclusive to everyone. Naomi leads a team of specialists in accessibility, universal design for learning, language literacy and numeracy, and access technologies. The team supports staff by building awareness, providing support, testing, and reporting on technology and undertaking strategic projects to help promote and embed inclusion at TAFE NSW.
(June 2024)