In an accessible classroom, teachers become the designers of classroom learning. But what about the curriculum?
It’s important to understand the nature of curriculum as it was originally intended. Knowledge is divided into subjects, each with measurable outcomes students are required to master. Concepts are organized from simple to complex, easier to more difficult, and are taught in a linear fashion. Success is determined by each student’s ability to master identical skills and concepts, using the same material and teaching methods, in the same amount of time. Outcomes are then tested in standardized ways, at regular intervals. There is however, a breakdown in this system. Taken subject by subject, there are so many specific curriculum outcomes, if each one were covered in the same fashion, there wouldn’t be any time to become fully engaged with each topic.
When presented with opportunities to approach existing curriculum topics in new ways, many teachers are intrigued, yet puzzled. It’s an interesting concept, many say, but at the end of the day, they are accountable to a curriculum.
Of course this is true, but the principles of Universal Design for Learning suggest there are many more ways of engaging students than teachers sometimes assume. When teachers in this study had access to appropriate computer technologies, they presented their students with a degree of choice in their learning – from different methods of acquiring information, to different ways in illustrating what students have learned. Teachers were also able to demonstrate a range of teaching strategies.
Additionally, it was found that students who had daily access to computers sought out and were provided with more timely feedback, via software applications, web environments, and with other individuals, both within and outside the classroom. It’s clear feedback of this nature improves learning.
