Enhancing Accessibility in Service-Learning: Implementing Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to Support Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Presenter: Colleen Shay
Faculty Sponsor: Ellen Correa
School: UMass Amherst
Research Area: Education & Educational Research
Session: Poster Session 1, 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM, Auditorium, A23
ABSTRACT
According to recent reports from the National Library of Medicine, adults who identify as having intellectual and/or developmental disabilities are nearly three times less likely than those who do not report having a disability to obtain a bachelor's degree (Yang & Tan, 2016). A significant contributor to this disparity is the physical, institutional, and attitudinal inaccessibility of higher education for individuals with disabilities. This current project investigates accessibility through the implementation of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework in an undergraduate service-learning course. UDL has the potential to make content more accessible for students with disabilities by providing a variety of means for students to access information, engage with course content, and demonstrate learning (Kurt, 2024).
In order to complete my critical civic engagement project, I am partnered with UMass Inclusive Learning (UIL,) a program designed to support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities as they navigate academics, employment, and social experience on the UMass campus. In collaboration with UIL, I am working to lessen barriers that currently prevent its students from enrolling in service-learning courses such as The Boltwood Project. To do this, I am seeking opportunities to expose UIL students to The Boltwood Project and its values. Additionally, I am speaking to UIL students to better understand what they are interested in learning relative to service-learning. This work aims to reduce the educational disparity between university students who report having disabilities and their neurotypical and able-bodied peers.RELATED ABSTRACTS
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