CAST & Stanford University Partner in Launching a Hub for UDL Innovation
Date:
Friday, March 30, 2018
CAST is pleased to announce the establishment of the UDL Innovation Studio at the Schwab Learning Center in partnership with Stanford University. The Studio, located on the Stanford campus, will provide a hub where researchers, faculty, clinicians, students, and technology developers can work together to develop new models and practices for educating all students, especially those who have been traditionally marginalized by existing methods and materials.
Led by Dr. Nicole Ofiesh, who holds positions at both CAST and Stanford, the Studio will be a first-in-the-nation, replicable model for regional resources aligned with the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Guidelines developed by CAST. The UDL Guidelines support the design and development of inclusive learning environments and best practices.
The UDL Innovation Studio’s goals are to:
- innovate new ideas and tools to support all learners
- create partnerships with Stanford students and faculty
- model the implementation of UDL for faculty at Stanford and other institutions of higher education
- develop and disseminate new knowledge about UDL in higher education
- successfully transition students into the workforce and society.
Why now?
This is an important time in society and education, when ideas about disability and potential are being reimagined within a strengths-based model. Recent advances in the learning sciences and in modern learning technologies provide a foundation for innovative precepts, practices and materials that were impossible or unthinkable previously. These advances provide the foundation for UDL and are the impetus for launching the UDL Innovation Studio at this moment in time.