Disability Services, Faculty Information

Volunteer State Community College | Student Services Division

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Click here to view VSCC Disability Guidelines Information

Elements of Good Teaching

Universal design is an approach to designing course instruction, materials, and content to benefit people of all learning styles without adaptation or retrofitting. This method of teaching provides equal access to learning, not simply equal access to information, and Universal Design also allows the student to control the method of accessing information while the teacher monitors the learning process and initiate any beneficial methods.

While this design enables the student to be self-sufficient, the teacher is responsible for imparting knowledge and facilitating the learning process. It should be noted that Universal Design does not remove academic challenges; it removes barriers to access. Simply state, Universal Design is just good teaching

Who will Benefit?

• Students who speak English as a second language
• International students
• Older students
• Students with disabilities
• A teacher whose teaching style is inconsistent with the student’s preferred learning style
• All students

Principles of Universal Design
(compiled from The Ohio State University Partnership Grant)

• Identify the essential course content
• Clearly express the essential content and any feedback given to the student
• Integrate natural supports for learning (i.e. using resources already found in the environment such as a study partner.
• Use a variety of instructional methods when presenting material
• Allow for multiple methods of demonstrating understanding of essential course content
• Use technology to increase accessibility
• Invite studetns to meet/contact the course instructor with any questions or concerns

An Overview of Common Teaching methods

	Strengths	Limitations	Preparation
Lecture	Ensures disseminations of specific facts Class size is not an issue	Little, if any student partcupation Only learn from one source	Informations to be learned needs to be clearly indicated Course instructor should allow adequate for content presented
Class Discussion	Information and ideas drawn from multiple people Student’s attention