Exploring universal design for learning and co-teaching for inclusive education
Subject
Abstract
Social and academic inclusion in schools may improve with knowledgeable professionals who support, collaborate, and encourage and model the inclusive frameworks Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and co-teaching. This thesis describes the necessity for Universal Design for Learning implementation and methods of collaboration, with a focus on co-teaching practices. An action research methodology was employed to discover methods to collaborate with colleagues in the researcher’s small, rural Saskatchewan school with the aim of improving her own practice as a student services teacher to encourage the implementation of Universal Design for Learning. Findings from the study generated themes related to eight topics: intentional and assertive communication, creating a knowledge base, initiation of change-based opportunities, advocacy, feedback and interactions with colleagues, and transformation of oneself. An overall theme of the study is recognition that to improve collaboration with colleagues, and to encourage UDL for meaningful inclusion, it is necessary to challenge the status quo, take risks, and lean into uncomfortable feelings. The study offers researchers and other professionals tangible UDL recommendations for their own practice, UDL strategies, implications for action research in student support teacher practice, and recommendations for further research.