Planning a lesson, using the UDL framework, is a process that requires clear definition of four fundamental components: Goals; Assessments; Methods; Materials (Meyer et al., 2014).
Figure 2. UDL Cycle of instructional planning (based on Rao & Meo, 2016).
The planning process, of course, begins with a definition of what the teacher intends to achieve according to the general curriculum. Rao and Meo (2016) provide an extensive example of this process, departing from one item from the Common Core State Standards: “Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences”. They suggest that teachers answer four questions:
- Based on the academic standard addressed in this lesson, what are the skills and concepts that we want students to master? → Goals
- How can students demonstrate achievement of the identified goals in varied ways? → Assessments
- What supports and scaffolds can be used as part of the instruction to help students acquire the content and demonstrate what they have learned? → Methods
- What resources, materials, and tools can be used to provide multiple means to represent and express information and concepts or to engage with content? → Materials
Table 1. Addressing standards with UDL-based flexible lesson components in an online environment (based on Rao & Mao, 2016).
Lesson components | Skills | Concepts |
|---|---|---|
Unwrap the standard |
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Step 1
Goals (develop clear goal statements) |
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Step 2
Assessments (develop formative and summative assessments related to goal statements) |
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Step 3
Methods (develop instructional strategies that integrate supports and scaffolds) |
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Step 4
Materials (use materials that provide flexible ways to develop and express skills and knowledge) |
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