Inclusion, accessibility and universal design for learning

Find the steps you can take to improve inclusion, accessibility and enable impactful learning.  

“We will be recognised globally as an inclusive educational community, widening participation, where the diversity of our student and academic body is celebrated and the individual needs of our students are respected and supported through a personalised, holistic and inclusive approach.” – Sussex 2025

The guidance on this page comprises three sections including:

• background information on inclusion and accessibility; what our students say, the legislation and best practice for teaching and learning (why)
• an introduction to the principles of Universal Design for Learning (what)
• UDL toolkit for module convenors (or anyone involved in designing teaching, learning and assessment) designed to help you undertake a self assessment of your teaching and assessment, and find actionable areas to develop, plus links out to further support, guidance and reading (how).

If there is something you're looking for and can't find it, please let us know.

Why inclusive teaching?

There are three key drivers for integrating inclusive teaching, learning and assessment into our everyday practice at Sussex:

• What our students are telling us

  The following comments have been taken from a series of surveys and reports which have been contributed to, or produced by, Student Connectors.

  Teaching and learning activities

  The reports and surveys by Student Connectors indicate that:

  • students would like opportunities for all voices to be heard, including those who lack the full confidence to attend group sessions (discussions, seminars, workshops etc.). Teachers are responsible for creating a positive environment where students can also encourage their peers
  • students appreciate transparency. For example where staff are actively working to decolonise the curriculum, they would like to be involved in the journey and process.
  • there is a high demand for more hands-on, interactive and active learning. They appreciate interactive learning tools, such as: Kahoot, live Q&A, and Padlet
  • students want opportunities to develop digital and employability skills and it shouldn't be assumed that they already posses these skills
  • lectures can be a challenge for some students, for example students with ADHD. Students report appreciating more active learning approaches
  • students want more practice of assessment modes, for example writing practice for an essay
  • technology can be an enabler, although it is noted that relying on students having access to certain technologies can be problematic as well. There is a digital divide, not just in access but also in capability.

   

  Assessment and feedback

  Results on assessment and feedback showed that:

  • students value a dialogue about the assessments and want to understand why they have been chosen; their purpose and role in the module design. They also report valuing links to learning outcomes at both the module and course level
  • students are prepared to take risks, though only where this is supported by diversity and scope of assessment topics for example. Dialogues are hugely important here.

   

  Online content and the virtual learning environment (VLE, Canvas)

  It was found that:

  • students want more resources available online –library resources in particular
  • pre-recorded lectures can be useful
  • signposting is a recurring theme, with students citing lack of consistency of key information across modules and signposting to key support resources, such as the Student Support Unit. Consequently, some students report relying on their lecturers to email content
  • students prefer clear signposting and consistent use of Canvas templates to email communication (which they receive a lot of)
  • students would like mandatory digital training for staff members and lecturers, highlighting the importance of developing our own digital capability, thus enabling us to work more inclusively.
• Sector best practice and guidance

  Sussex 2025

  Our own Strategic Framework, Sussex 2025, aspires for our institution to become recognised globally as an inclusive educational community. The Learn to Transform pillar includes several key aims relating directly to inclusion and accessibility, such as:

  • review assessment and feedback mechanisms to ensure inclusive practice
  • working with students to understand student diversity
  • growing alternative and flexible delivery methods.

   

  Advance HE

  “An inclusive curriculum design approach is one that takes into account students’ educational, cultural and social background and experience as well as the presence of any physical or sensory impairment and their mental well-being. It enables higher education institutions (HEI) to embed quality enhancement processes that ensure an anticipatory response to equality in learning and teaching.”

  Inclusive curriculum design in higher education, HEA (Advance HE)
  

   

  De Montfort University (DMU)

  DMU has been using the Universal Design for Learning framework for many years. Dr Kevin Merry, Senior Academic Development Consultant at DMU, joined us at an event for Global Accessibility Awareness Day (20 May 2021) in which he walked us through how DMU uses the UDL framework and what that looks like at DMU. We also caught up with Kevin in the TEL podcast, linked below.

  "So there's a very diverse group and community of learners within the institution. And we just felt that a one size fits all way of teaching them just wouldn't work. We needed to find more bespoke more customisable ways to ensure that the vast majority of those students could learn effectively and could achieve successful outcomes."

  Dr. Kevin Merry on the TEL:US podcast

   

  Plymouth University

  Plymouth University has a lot of excellent resources, but this quote in particularly highlights our collective responsibility.

  “It is a social/political/ethical responsibility - for you to treat your colleagues and students fairly and for them to treat you fairly in return. Creating vibrant and critical discussion in the classroom requires you to foster open and respectful environments in order that such discussions can take place."

  Why is inclusive teaching and learning important, Plymouth University

• Regulatory bodies and legislation

  Whilst much of the above should be enough to encourage us to design more inclusively, it’s also worth noting the legislative and regulatory environment in which we sit as an HEI. Namely, the Equality Act 2010, Web Accessibility legislation and the National Student Survey run by the Office for Students.

  Equality Act, 2010

  To meet our obligations under the Equality Act 2010, we must:

  • eliminate direct AND indirect discrimination
  • advance equality of opportunity
  • foster good relationships.

   

  Web accessibility legislation

  The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 requires that our websites (and apps) are digitally accessible to a given standard (WCAG...). This includes each Canvas module site.

   

  Office for Students (OfS) and the National Student Survey (NSS)

  The NSS, run by the OfS contains a number of questions which have bearing on inclusive curriculum design, including Learning Resources, Learning Community and Student Voice, which itself includes an opportunity for students to report positive AND negative experiences.

Enabling inclusive teaching and learning (what)

Knowing that we should be doing something, and why we should be doing it, is one thing. Knowing where to start is something else entirely. ‘Universal Design for Learning’ (UDL), an evidence based curriculum design framework, is a great place to start.

How to enable inclusive teaching and learning

Incorporating inclusive and accessible modules is key for effective teaching and learning, and this can be done using UDL self-assessment tools.

UDL self-assessment tools

Using the UDL framework, we have created a series of self-assessment tools designed to give you buildable and actionable strategies for incorporating inclusive design across your modules. Each is available in three different formats.

Teaching and learning activities

• Google (copy and paste the contents to your own Drive document to use the checkboxes)
• Excel [Excel 77.7KB]l 
• Word [DOC 16.4KB] 

Assessment and feedback

• Google (copy and paste the contents to your own Drive document to use the checkboxes)
• Excel [Excel 77.1KB]
• Word [DOC 16.2KB]

Curriculum resources and the VLE (Canvas)

• Google (nb: copy and paste the contents to your own Drive document to use the checkboxes)
• Excel [Excel 77.3KB]
• Word [DOC 16.4KB]

Guidance, support, resources and further reading

Links to resources, guidance, support and research relating to each of the three categories.

If you are unable to find something that you are looking for please just get in touch.

• Teaching and learning activities

  Support at Sussex

  See our guidance on teaching methods

  Articles, papers and external guides

  Some useful resources include the following:

   

  • Universal Design for Learning in Teaching Large Lecture Classes.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  ‘These findings thus underscore the importance of engaging students in learning activities both inside and outside of the classroom through the offering of multiple instructional tools that create a UDL environment’
  • Measuring the Effectiveness of Universal Design for Learning Intervention in Postsecondary Education.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract: The familiarity and rapport that develops between students and instructors across the duration of a course appear to be important factors in the improvement of certain UDL teaching strategies, such as showing enthusiasm, providing prompt and useful feedback, and actively engaging students in the learning process
  • ADVANCE ORGANIZERS. Preparing Students for Learning.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  Students favor having notes available prior to class which helps reduce their stress level during class. Instead of worrying about trying to write everything down, students are able to ask questions and pay attention to examples to gain a better understanding of important course content
  • Higher education students with disabilities speaking out: perceived barriers and opportunities of the Universal Design for Learning framework.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  Instructors who set appropriate goals and guided students to self-monitor and self-reflect were perceived as highly effective
  • Accessible by design: Applying UDL principles in a first year undergraduate course.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract: Cheryl stated that "knowing the expectations for all components of the course on the first day greatly contributed to her success in the course"
  • video: Sharing Stories: Antiracism and Universal Design for Learning with Andratesha Fritzgerald.
• Assessment and feedback

  Support at Sussex

  Find flexible assessment, guidance, info and further links

  Articles, papers and external guides

  Other useful information and guides include:

  • Cross-Pollinating Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy and UDL.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  Assessments can be pedagogical tools of exclusion. To address this concern, strategies were used to build on principles that assessments are informed by students’ cultural repertoires, identities, and out-of-school practices to widen what is assessed
  • Transparency isn’t spoon-feeding: How a transformative approach to the use of explicit assessment criteria can support student self-regulation.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  The provision of explicit assessment criteria should be seen as the starting point to developing their own understanding of how to address these criteria
  • Inclusive assessment at point-of-design
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  This case study presents an approach to assessment that both embeds optionality and develops pedagogical practice in inclusive assessment.

   

• Curriculum resources and the VLE (Canvas)

  Support at Sussex

  You can get support from:

  • UoS Digital Accessibility Toolkit
  • SensusAccess a self serve tool for converting text based media.

   

  Articles

  Some useful articles include:

  • Culturally Relevant Pedagogy 2.0: a.k.a. the Remix
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  This highlights using a mix of canon and alternative or new 'texts' Detailing how students read work by canonical social theorists, including Bourdieu, Durkheim, Woodson, and DuBois. But it also had some new and nontraditional elements. We did close readings of what might be seen as alternative texts—hip-hop lyrics, videos of hip-hop artists, and 1960s-era protest poetry
  • Engaging Graduate Students in the Online Learning Environment: A Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Approach to Teacher Preparation.
    Key findings/snippet of abstract:  Focused on online teacher education, this paper finds that students appreciate a variety of contact and communication methods. Notably, increasing their feeling of connectedness to their tutor and to their peers. 

   

  Sussex Case Studies

  • ‘Decolonising the Curriculum through Co-Creation’ in the Department of English 

See more from Curriculum design