Planning Your Class
Planning Your Class
Planning Your Class
Planning Your Class
Planning Your Class
Planning Your Class
Mission Statement
We are a group of students from Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges convened by the Teaching and Learning Institute (for more information on TLI, please see https://www.brynmawr.edu/tli/) for the purpose of exploring Universal Design for Learning and accessibility in higher education. The work of our group is intended to support and supplement the resources provided by Bryn Mawr’s Department of Access Services (https://www.brynmawr.edu/access-services) and Haverford’s Department of Access and Disability Services (https://www.haverford.edu/access-and-disability-services).
​
Our ongoing project is led by a group of students who are at various stages in their undergraduate careers and represent a variety of disciplines, including Biology, Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, and Education.
Our group has several main goals:
-
To develop a resource to introduce undergraduate faculty to Universal Design for Learning (UDL--more information on this is available on the next page), and explain the importance of UDL and accessibility
-
To develop a resource for faculty to aid in the creation of classrooms that are accessible and aligned with the principles of UDL
-
To provide concrete strategies--some of which will be demonstrated through the format of the resource--for faculty to draw upon for implementation in their classes
-
To encourage faculty to reflect on the practices in their classrooms and how these practices attempt to meet the needs of all students in the class
​
The ideas presented in this resource are grounded in data and information gathered from several sources. Specifically, several students involved in the project work as student consultants to faculty members through the Students as Learners and Teachers (SaLT) program. We also conducted interviews of students and faculty to gather additional information to support our ideas. This project is ongoing and resources may regularly be amended, along with the possible creation of additional resources and workshops to best support faculty. Additionally, the list of strategies and practices proposed in this resource are not intended to constitute an exhaustive list of UDL practices nor do we intend these to be considered the best strategies for every educator and every classroom.
Who We Are
Nicole Litvitskiy
Haverford '20
Nicole Litvitskiy is a senior Psychology major with a minor in Education. She is passionate about mental health, the role of schooling and education in student well-being. Nicole worked as a student consultant through the TLI program for several semesters, and continues to work with faculty partners on designing accessible courses (syllabi) and classrooms, using this resource as a tool and a guide for this work. She plans to continue this work beyond Haverford by pursuing a degree and career in school and clinical psychology.
Saarika Kumar
Bryn Mawr '19
Saarika Kumar graduated as a Psychology major with a minor in Computer Science. She is an advocate for accessibility and universal design for learning. Through this project, she hopes for faculty to better understand the principles underlying the concept of universal design for learning and why it is especially important in an academic environment.
Sasha Mathrani
Haverford '18
Sasha graduated from Haverford in 2018 with a major in Biology and minors in Education and Health Studies. She worked as a TLI student consultant in the Bi-co for much of her time at Haverford and had the opportunity to work with faculty in various departments, including one partnership focused on principles of Universal Design for Learning. Her passion for accessibility and building relationships has led her to her current position as an Academic Technologist at St. Luke's School in New Canaan, CT.
Carrie Filion
Bryn Mawr '18
Carrie graduated from Bryn Mawr in 2018 with a major in physics and a minor in math. She got involved with the TLI as a way to realize her passion for inclusive, accessible teaching at the collegiate level. She is interested, especially, in the tenants of universal design as it applies to pedagogy, and hopes to create diverse and inclusive classrooms as a professor of physics in the future.
Katarina Karris-Flores
Bryn Mawr '20
Katarina Karris-Flores is a current senior at Bryn Mawr College. Her major is Sociology with a minor in Spanish. On campus, Katarina is currently an intern at the Admissions Office and one of the head Tour Guides. She was involved with TLI in the Spring of 2018, and was approached by Professor Kaylea Berard to become a part of the TLI team for the semester. She mainly observed Kaylea's class each week and took detailed notes on what UDL practices Kaylea incorporated into her classes. Katarina would then share her notes with Sasha, Carrie, and Nicole so they could comprise a list of UDL practices Kaylea used to serve as a reference for other Bryn Mawr and Haverford faculty.