Expanding Online Professional Learning in the Post-COVID Era: The Potential of the Universal Design for Learning Framework

Abstract

Teaching and learning in higher education have dramatically changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The global health crisis has forced faculty to experiment with virtual teaching in a short amount of time, and students were compelled to learn online. While online instruction during COVID-19 is considered contingent-based virtual instruction, it would be most likely that online courses would be part of the instruction modalities in the post-COVID era. In this article, we document the process of creating an asynchronous online course swiftly, guided by the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework. It sheds light on the value of the UDL to expedite the scaleup of online professional learning while sustaining student interaction and engagement.