Lesson 2 – Design Options for Welcoming Interests and Identities
Multiple Means of Engagement offers many ways for students to personally connect with their learning. It is important that they feel they can be themselves in class and that they relate to the lessons, seeing personal value in what they are learning.
However, what is engaging to one student may not have the same impact on another. A single student’s preferences and interests can also change over time and across learning situations. When students don’t feel recognized and valued, they may become less invested in learning. Whereas when students feel their whole selves and voices are welcomed and valued in our classrooms, learning transforms into an engaging and deeply meaningful experience.
How do we do that as educators? There are four ways we can welcome our students’ diverse selves into our lessons and encourage them to develop agency. Remember, in UDL, we refer to these as considerations.
Choose how to learn:
- Watch: Select the green information icons in the image below to open video explanations with examples.
- Read: Design Options for Welcoming Interests and Identities. This Word document is a text alternative to the videos and contains descriptive links to additional resources and citations.
Reflection and Resources
Multiple Means of Engagement offers many ways for students to connect authentically to their learning. In this section, we focused on how students’ unique interests and identities influence their engagement.
In the UDL 3.0 Guidelines, Consideration 7.4 has an enhanced focus on addressing biases, threats, and distractions in class. Here are some reflection questions to consider on this topic, followed by resources to support your learning: