WHAT CAN A VIRUS TELL US ABOUT ACCESSIBILITY AND UNIVERSAL

DESIGN OF LEARNING (UDL)?

Are we disconnected?

In the digital age, as citizens of the globalized world, we would not expect to come across the

issue “status: disconnected” other than our internet connections. If we were to ask educators and

researchers about the relationship between accessibility and viruses, most would explain it with

broken accessibility of educational resources due to disconnected internet access, harmful viruses

and/or files being deleted. We would think of viruses in learning environments as the ones

embedding themselves into the software, infections in terms of infected files, spreading on the

computer rather than the human body before the rapid spread of COVID-19 has sparked alarm

all over the world. Making most of the world disconnected from crowds and millions of students

from their schools, coronavirus has valuable lessons to teach us. With emergency health

declarations and school closures in many countries around the world, many universities and

schools are looking for ways of smooth transitions to online delivery and making an effort to

serve their students to the best of their ability. Unfortunately, the research done in over one

thousand school districts in the US by Education Week indicates that 41% of school leaders are

unable to provide online or remote learning opportunities for several reasons. The results may

mean a pandemic virus, beyond our imagination, has become a huge barrier, harming

accessibility. Nevertheless, this pandemic also reveals the importance of the principles of

Universal Design of Learning (UDL) in terms of developing motivated, purposeful and

independent learners who can access learning no matter what, not only in language teaching but

in all areas of education. If UDL guidelines can be applied in educational settings better, and

early seeds of independence and motivation are planted in learners, even under unprecedented
conditions, barriers can be transformed into challenges with existent resources anywhere and

anytime.

Technology and Motivation

As a language teacher who witnessed successful technology use in education, after the outbreak

of COVID-19, I was expecting a smooth transition to online learning, especially in developed

countries and relatively more developed parts of developing countries, if not everywhere.

Although authorities are scrambling to figure out ways to close any likely gaps in learning, a

variety of factors are preventing this from happening: millions of learners having no internet

access, schools being not ready to deliver instruction totally online, not all learners and staff

being digitally literate, the likelihood of learning management systems and platforms being

overloaded, and cyberattacks targeting learning. Moreover, as the picture becomes more precise,

more and more school closures around the world are being reported, and instructional activities

have been paused due to COVID19. Consequently, a huge number of learners are not able to

move out of their homes. Reflecting on the meaning of the word motivation, derived from the

Latin word movere, is to move, we may see the ironic relationship between the learners being

unable to move out of their homes and the motivational factors (Ushioda, 2008).When learners

cannot be closely guided by their instructors and various technological barriers exist, what will

move learners to continue learning? The irony has taken me to a trip in my mind to different

learner profiles I have met throughout my teaching career. Like many other teachers, I can

categorize my students into three groups: Those who are intrinsically motivated, those who are

extrinsically motivated, and those who are not motivated. Extrinsic motivation comes from

outside factors, whereas intrinsic motivation comes from deep down in the minds and hearts of
learners, which is the pure love of learning (Dörnyei, 1994).The final group of learners is the

ones that educators have a hard time encouraging and engaging in learning activities.

In my practice, I deliver no-homework tickets, do bring-your-own-song-and-lyrics for

five-minute fun activities, give extra credits for my students’ distinguished achievements and

efforts, let them watch a short YouTube, BBC, CNN, VOA video breaks to foster my students’

motivation. Though these work for many students, the language learners who make the most of

them have always been the ones who are intrinsically motivated, who can internalize the

language learning process, have a sense of achievement, and a love of learning. Of all these

groups, my attempts for technology integration such as using smartboards, hundreds of digital

tools such as WeVideo, Flipgrid, English portals, e-books have benefitted most to and worked

most efficiently for intrinsically motivated learners. The second group benefitting from

technology integration has been the ones who are motivated by a means to reach an end, namely

extrinsically motivated learners. Those who I fail to sow a love of learning from within or from

outside, by any means, have been the ones I could not reap any language learning from, and

technology could not go beyond being an edutainment, if not go too far down the entertainment

for them.

How can Universal Design of Learning help learners movere- move?

UDL aims to support learners by providing access and removing the barriers in learning

environments and processes. It is based on three principles that are derived from research in

cognitive neuroscience, addressing predictable variability of learners across three brain

networks: affective, recognition, and strategic. The framework is composed of three main

principles: multiple means of representation, multiple means of action and expression, and

multiple means of engagement (CAST,2018). The principles guide teachers through

comprehensive guidelines, building flexible and inclusive pathways in the learning process, so

the needs and preferences of diverse learners can be accommodated better (Rao & Torres, 2016).

In this way, it provides more personalized instruction and aims to develop more independent,

motivated, and resourceful learners. Being trained about how to reach out resources as a

knowledgeable learner (multiple means of representation), becoming a strategic and goal

directed learner ( multiple means of action and expression), and being motivated to learn

( multiple means of engagement) can be life-saving skills in unprecedented conditions like those

of this pandemic. The learners who have gained these skills can find their ways in one way or

another and reach out to the endless resources out there. Language learners who are already

resourceful learners can watch millions of YouTube videos, watch movies and tutorials in the

target language, read e-books, watch the news full of pandemic developments around the world,

read printed materials, listen to podcasts if they are taught through multiple means of

presentation principle during their previous learning experience. They can keep diaries of these

unforgettable days, creating a chance to use pandemic and health-related vocabulary which they

are exposed to on TV, social media, internet, and in their surroundings if they live in an English

speaking environment, in the most authentic way possible. Nevertheless, the most important of

all, if principle 3 (multiple means of engagement) has been applied effectively, the motivation of

students would be fostered, and learners will movere to continue learning in every way they can.

When motivation does not exist, neither physical learning environments nor virtual ones can

enhance continued learning.

Affective Filter hypothesis and the Affective Domain of UDL

The affective domain of UDL -multiple means of engagement- addresses similar factors with

Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis. Multiple means of engagement necessitates providing

options for recruiting interest, sustaining effort and persistence, and self- regulation, all of which

are related to resilience and motivation. Affective Filter Hypothesis suggests optimal language

learning takes place in low-anxiety environments with highly motivated and self-confident

learners (Krashen, 1982). Having observed hundreds of students struggling to learn due to high-

stress levels and lack of motivation, I am an advocate of this hypothesis. I believe that the

implementations in the classrooms should consider attitudinal and affective variables of learners.

The UDL principles regarding affective domain have the capacity of optimizing motivation and

self-regulation in learners by providing options for physical action, expression and

communication, and executive functions, which is crucial for learning to occur. According to the

affective domain of UDL, in the learning environments, students will become purposeful and

motivated learners if certain checkpoints can be achieved. In essence, students should be allowed

a certain degree of choice within the restrictions of the curriculum, and the distractions and

threats should be minimized. It is essential to give mastery-oriented feedback and to enhance

personal coping strategies, self-assessment, and self-reflection skills. Likewise, Affective Filter

Hypothesis is based on the idea that there is a filter in the brains of language learners, first

proposed by Dulay and Burt in 1977, and learners learn less when the filter is high or strong.

(Krashen, 2009). Krashen claims that if situations and environments can encourage a low filter,

learners will become more motivated and develop autonomy. Through the strategies suggested

by the multiple means of engagement principle of UDL, learners’ motivation from outside- in the

short term- and from within- in the long run- can be fostered, and a more quality learning might

be produced not only in normal conditions but also in unprecedented times like COVID19.
 To conclude, a crucial lesson we must learn as educators from this pandemic is that

instead of doing after the fact, we must plant the seeds of 21st-century skills early to reap the

benefits on time, thereby learning becomes ubiquitous at any time. At this very point, the UDL

can ideally guide educators to address the full range of needs of learners and all learning

environments. Whether the learning environment will be virtual, bricks-and-mortar schools, or

blended, the principles of UDL are much needed to develop independent learners who are

motivated and have strong 21st century skills such as critical thinking, communication,

collaboration, and creativity.

References
National Survey on Coronavirus Preparedness Shows School Leaders Aren't Ready for
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school-leaders-aren-t-ready-for-remote-learning?autoStart=true
CAST (2018).UDL and the Learning Brain. Wakefield, MA: Author. Retrieved from
http://www.cast.org/our-work/publications/2018/udl-learning-brain-neuroscience.htm
CAST (2018). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 2.2. Retrieved from
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Krashen, S. D. (1982, January 1). [PDF] Principles and Practice in Second Language
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practices-in-second-language-acquisition.html
Rao, K., & Torres, C. (2016, November 30). Supporting Academic and Affective Learning
Processes for English Language Learners with Universal Design for Learning.
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