Access, Universal Design and the Sustainability of Teaching Practices: a Powerful Synchronicity of Concepts at a Crucial Conjuncture for Higher Education

Abstract

Sustainability in Higher Education is usually interpreted as a concept applying solely to operations management and energy policy. Though the applicability of the concept to social justice is immediately tangible, few campuses have found organic and pragmatic ways to extend principles of sustainability to their equity, diversity or inclusion practices, or to convince their community of the need to do so. This study examines the unique experience of North American campus having attempted this progressive osmosis between the two concepts. Access has represented the opportunity for this rethink. As individual, retroactive accommodations become increasingly obsolete when it comes to providing access to learning to large number of students with specific needs entering post-secondary education, sustainability has become an increasingly appealing lens with which to devise a new framework for inclusion seeking systemic change in pedagogical practices. The North American campus in question implemented a proactive drive for the implementation of Universal Design for Learning from 2011 and this paper presents the analysis of the various and complex ways access and sustainability have become entwined in campus policies. The outcomes are particularly relevant for the Global South in that it may encourage Higher Education institutions in developing countries to avoid the temporary appeal of medical model based measures of inclusion and the precedents set in the Global North over the last two decades, and to focus instead on social model based policies that seek the development of sustainable and inclusive teaching practices from the onset.

Accommodation Dispensing or Course Design Consulting?: Views and Experiences of Accessibility Consultants Contributing to Inclusive Course Redesigns in Postsecondary Education

“…As noted, UDL is aimed at far more than just proactively addressing accommodation needs. It has been shown to support learners from equity-deserving groups, international students, first-generation students, and many others (Fovet, 2021) and been seen as a move toward sustainability in education (Fovet, 2017). Both, student self-advocacy toward greater inclusive practices and partnerships between teaching faculty and disability service staff such as ACs have been promoted as key to supporting greater implementation of UDL (Black & Moore, 2019;Buchannan & Smith, 2015;Cory et al, 2010;Kartovicky, 2020).…”

Developing an Ecological Approach to the Strategic Implementation of UDL in Higher Education

“…However, the change of mindset this implies has been slow to date. While sustainability would offer a perfect, cohesive, overarching and cementing theme for all the HE stakeholders who might be invested in the promotion of UDL, there is still much awareness that needs to be created in this area; a culture shift must first occur (Fovet, 2017).…”

Universal Design for Learning as a Tool for Inclusion in the Higher Education Classroom: Tips for the Next Decade of Implementation

“…A development which is important to note is that UDL has allowed for international exchanges and discussions around inclusion in the post-secondary sector, between campuses across borders, particularly between North America and Europe; UDL has served as common language in these international networking [25]. Lastly UDL has positioned itself as the only framework for inclusion which aligns itself with principles of sustainability [26]. It indeed reduces pressure on accessibility services, allows the majority of students' needs to be addressed in the classroom itself, and reduces overall costs while transforming pedagogy.…”