Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect” (Web Accessibility Initiative, n.d.). As expressed by its director, “The power of the web is in its universality. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which develops and maintains protocols used on the web to ensure interoperability, is committed to UD. IT has the potential either to level the playing field or to widen the gaps in educational and career attainment between individuals who have disabilities-or are from other minority groups-and members of the majority. Example: work area in a science lab that is usable by students who are right- or left-handed and have a wide range of physical characteristics. Appropriate size and space is provided for approach, reach, manipulation, and use regardless of the user’s body size, posture, or mobility. Example: Doors with sensors that automatically open for everyone. The design can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue. Example: Software controls that provide guidance when the student makes an inappropriate selection. The design minimizes hazards and the adverse consequences of accidental or unintended actions. Dormitory example: An emergency alarm system with visual, aural, and kinesthetic characteristics. The design communicates necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions or the user’s sensory abilities. Example: Choosing a 3-D printer that is easy to use and includes clear instructions. Use of the design is easy to understand, regardless of the user’s experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level. Example: A design that allows a museum visitor to choose to read or listen to the description of the contents of display cases. The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences and abilities. Example: A makerspace that has equipment and furniture to make it usable by students with a wide range of characteristics, including disabilities. The design is useful and marketable to people with diverse abilities. These principles of UD are listed below, along with examples of application to physical spaces in formal and informal educational settings. UD PrinciplesĪrchitects, product designers, engineers, and environmental design researchers at the CUD established seven principles for the universal design of any product or environment (The Center for Universal Design, 1997). They are underpinned by three sets of principles for UDE: UD, WCAG and UDL. The following sections present examples of UDE applications-physical spaces, IT, instruction, and student services. Unlike an accommodation for a specific person with a disability, the practice of UDE is proactive and benefits all students, including those who are not receiving disability-related accommodations and other services from the school. UD has been applied to many educational products (e.g., websites, textbooks, lab equipment) and environments (e.g., classrooms, libraries). All universally designed products and environments are accessible, usable, and inclusive. Mace and other visionaries developed the definition of UD used by the Center for Universal Design (CUD) at North Carolina State University: “the design of products and environments to be usable to the greatest extent possible by people of all ages and abilities”. The term universal design (UD) was coined by the architect Ronald Mace, who challenged the conventional approach of designing for the average user and provided a design foundation for more accessible and usable products and environments. computers, educational software, and websites.UDE provides a philosophical framework for the design of all products and environments at all educational levels. Though universal design has its roots in the design field of architecture and commercial products and information technology (IT), UDE applications are relatively new. UDE goes beyond accessible design for people with disabilities to make all aspects of the educational experience more inclusive for students, staff, instructors, administrators, and visitors with a great variety of characteristics, including those related to gender, race and ethnicity, age, stature, disability, and learning preference. While physical spaces, courses, technology, and student services are often designed for the average student, the practice of universal design in education (UDE) considers people diverse characteristics in the design of all formal and informal educational products and environments.
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