Lesson2: PrincipleII: Provide Multiple Means of Action and Expression

Principle II.Provide Multiple Means of Action and Expression

students differ in the ways that they can navigate a learning environment and express what they know. For example, individuals with significant motor disabilities (e.g., cerebral palsy), those who struggle with strategic and organizational abilities (e.g., executive function disorders, ADHD), those who have language barriers, and so forth approach learning tasks very differently. Some may be able to express themselves well in writing text but not oral speech, and vice versa. In reality, there is no one means of expression that will be optimal for all students; providing options for expression is therefore essential

Guideline 4:Provide options for physical action:

A textbook or workbook in a print format provides limited means of navigation or physical interaction (e.g., by turning pages with fingers, handwriting in spaces provided). Many interactive pieces of educational software similarly provide only limited means of navigation or interaction (e.g., by dexterously manipulating a joystick or keyboard). Navigation and interaction in those limited ways will raise barriers for some students—those who are physically disabled, blind, dysgraphic, or who have various kinds of executive function disorders. It is important to provide materials with which all students can interact. Properly designed curricular materials provide a seamless interface with common assistive technologies—such as voice activated switches, expanded keyboards, and so forth—that enable individuals with motor disabilities to navigate a text and express what they know.

Guideline 5:Provide options for expressive skills and fluency

There is no medium of expression that is equally suited for all students or for all kinds of communication. On the contrary, there are media that seem poorly suited to some kinds of expression and for some kinds of students. While a student with dyslexia may excel at story-telling in conversation, he may falter drastically when telling that same story in writing. Alternative modalities for expression should be provided both to level the playing field among students and to introduce all students to the full range of media that are important for communication and literacy in our multimedia culture. Additionally, students vary widely in their familiarity and fluency with the conventions of any one medium. Within media, therefore, alternative supports should be available to scaffold and guide students who are at different levels of their apprenticeships in learning to express themselves competently.

Guideline 6:Provide options for executive functions

At the highest level of human capacity to act skillfully are the so-called "executive functions." Associated with the prefrontal cortex in the brain, these capabilities allow humans to overcome impulsive, short-term reactions to their environment and to instead set long-term goals, plan effective strategies for reaching those goals, monitor their progress, and modify strategies as needed. Of critical importance to educators is the fact that executive functions have limited capacity and are especially vulnerable to disability. This is true because executive capacity is sharply reduced when (1) executive functioning capacity must be devoted to managing "lower-level" skills and responses that are not automatic or fluent (due to either disability or inexperience) and thus the capacity for "higher-level" functions is taken, and (2) executive capacity itself is reduced due to some sort of higher-level disability or to a lack of fluency with executive strategies. The UDL approach typically involves efforts to expand executive capacity in two ways: (1) by scaffolding lower-level skills so they require less executive processing, and (2) by scaffolding higher-level executive skills and strategies so they are more effective and better developed. Previous Guidelines have addressed lower-level scaffolding, and this Guideline addresses ways to provide scaffolding for executive functions themselves.