Universal Design for Learning as a Curriculum Development Tool in Physical Education

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to discuss the universal design for learning (UDL) framework as a curriculum development tool and illustrate how it can be implemented in the physical education setting to include children with disabilities. Although a few scholars in physical education have advocated for the implementation of UDL, their efforts may not have had the desired results, perhaps due to a misinterpretation of UDL's key concepts. The UDL framework places an emphasis on curriculum development that proactively includes scaffolds in which to provide modifications for children with varying abilities. This method enables teachers to improve their inclusion efforts for children with disabilities. The framework is similar to the National Standards for K–12 Physical Education in that it can be generalized to a diverse student body, which makes it easy to provide alternatives and modifications to reach certain goals. This article explains how educators can use UDL as a curriculum development tool to proactively include students with disabilities in their classes.