Photo by Ernesto Scarponi on Unsplash

As I reflect back on what I have learned from the design thinking process, developing Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Accessibility for Ontarians with Disability Act (AODA) for Faculty, the experience has indeed been deeply transformative for me. Having had the opportunity to create many digital learning resources prior to LRNT527, there was still much to explore and innovate.

What was the most surprising thing you learned by participating in the design thinking process and designing and developing your digital learning resource?

In the process of creating an accessible, inclusive educational environment, and community that models UDL and AODA, I was met with many accessible complexities that I was not familiar with. Due to my limited visceral experience with many disabilities, I was humbled by what I did not yet know and continuously needed to check in with my privileges, personal knowledge, and assumptions. Thus, I am working on gaining experiential experience and feedback from learners with various abilities to help me make this resource more accessible. Yardley et al. (2012) emphasized its importance as experiential learning constructs knowledge and meaning from real-life experience.

What suggestions and improvements did you receive? Did you get any feedback that you did not expect? What feedback needs further investigation?

• • Joubert (2021) suggested the downloadable text for videos and ReadSpeaker for Brightspace. I am currently working on implementing downloadable text for all videos as it will be incredibly beneficial to all learners. A further consideration is required to obtain ReadSpeaker as it is an additional integration to our Learning Management System (LMS).
  • From a private assignment feedback, Dr. Jenni Hayman shared, “in the empathy element, I always want to know more about the learners’ self-perceived technology skills and how they prefer to learn new information about digital processes. The answers are often surprising!” I found this to be true to my experience and continuously try to check in with the learners to learn about how they learn.

What are the next steps you would like to take to build upon your digital learning resource?

The next steps are to make changes based on the feedback received and focus on why and how the content (the process) will be delivered to the learners. As Romack et al. (2010) describe, learning tasks are designed with two main goals in mind:

1. 1. Students attaining learning outcomes.
   2. Getting students motivated about learning.

Moreover, a significant body of research has documented many benefits for learners who participate in experiential learning. Moving forward, I strive to continue to make modifications to create more meaningful learning experiences and engaging the learners. Worsham & Roux (2019) echo that learner-centred design places learners and learning at the design process center. Focusing on helping learners achieve their objectives, break down challenges into manageable parts, and foster meaningful, memorable, and transformative learning.

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References:

Joubert, J.-P. (2021). LRNT527 [LRNTECH-MA 2020-1 OL] Jun 14 2021: UDL and AODA for Faculty. https://moodle.royalroads.ca/moodle/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=789509#p3144503

Romack, J., Weimer, M., Ryan, T. E., Martin, D., Gee, J., Coffman, S. J., Bodish, R., Spencer, E., & Harvey, A. (2010). How to Get Students to Read What’s Assigned. https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ijdl/index

Worsham, D., & Roux, S. (2019). Foundations in Learner-Centered Design | Learner-Centered Design. https://uclalibrary.github.io/foundations/modules/design-process/overview/

Yardley, S., Teunissen, P. W., & Dornan, T. (2012). Experiential learning: Transforming theory into practice. Medical Teacher, 34(2), 161–164. https://doi.org/10.3109/0142159X.2012.643264