Universal Design in Higher Education: From Principles to Practice

by Sheryl E. Burgstahler (Editor), Rebecca C. Cory (Editor)

Universal Design in Higher Education looks at the design of physical and technological environments at institutions of higher education; at issues pertaining to curriculum and instruction; and at the full array of student services.

Universal Design in Higher Education is a comprehensive guide for researchers and practitioners on creating fully accessible college and university programs. It is founded upon, and contributes to, theories of universal design in education that have been gaining increasingly wide attention in recent years. As greater numbers of students with disabilities attend postsecondary educational institutions, administrators have expressed increased interest in making their programs accessible to all students. This book provides both theoretical and practical guidance for schools as they work to turn this admirable goal into a reality. It addresses a comprehensive range of topics on universal design for higher education institutions, thus making a crucial contribution to the growing body of literature on special education and universal design. This book will be of unique value to university and college administrators, and to special education researchers, practitioners, and activists.

Genres: Research, Disability, Nonfiction

300 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rated not based on if I’d read again (and tbh, I probably will) but based on content. Every higher education professional needs to read this book. Accessible doesn’t always mean equitable. Everyone is different - backgrounds, living situations, economic stability, mental health, physical health, gender, ethnicity, etc. … why should we teach a “one size fits all” model when we know it doesn’t work for a majority of our students?!

[E23944 e23944 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rated as part of a core class on Universal Design. Found this book to be useful on how to create and test website or web applications for user ability in testing standards for W3C guidelines, WCAG guidelines, Section 508 guidelines, and how to apply them. This text was suggested reading with the University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign class named “Accessibility to Inclusive Design” on Coursera.

[Alisha White · Rating 5 out of 5]

For anyone in higher education who is interested in implementing Universal Design for course design or program policy and practices. Edited book with chapters introducing UD principles and strategies for implementation, as well as sections with reports from practitioners focused on instruction, student services and physical spaces, and promoting UD within institutions.

[Лариса · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very useful text for the application of UD principles to higher education. I wish it had a little bit more of a disability justice lens, but it is a very good resource nonetheless.

[CEHD at the U of M]

Martha Thurlow and Christopher Johnstone, contributors.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The charts were especially useful to give concrete ideas to abstract theories.