Hello all,
After Christmas holidays and a small winter, we are back to normal, from sparkling cold winter weather to plus degrees and rain. But what is normal in the classroom, and how is it experienced by students who need adaptations? The issue of universal design is relevant and important. In March 2024, a new law for universities and university colleges that strengthens the requirements for universal design in higher education was adopted, and we as institutions and teachers must follow suit. Now you might think that this can be difficult to follow up in an otherwise challenging everyday life, but in many cases, it’s just about being willing to work a little differently, and to develop your courses in new ways.
Universal design is not just about installing a ramp or making other physical adaptations to classrooms. It’s just as much about building courses that invite participation and lower the threshold for getting started. As a teacher, you may already be doing a lot of things right. Simple measures can include making as much material available well in advance of each teaching module, using canvas/mitt-uib to structure your own and your students’ work, ensuring good slides or using a microphone when teaching.
In the fall, a project started at BIO where videos related to major courses are subtitled. Video material is increasingly in demand and used by students, and such material can be improved in terms of universal design with relatively simple measures, such as good subtitles. Priority has been given to relatively large, compulsory courses where video material is an important part of the courses. If you have video material that could benefit from subtitles, please get in touch.
Projects like this, in combination with greater awareness when designing courses, can accomplish much for relatively little extra work. And it’s needed. A major university in the UK reported that as many as 25% of its student body needed adaptations, if you asked all students about their needs. The figure is quite large, but it may be that the needs have always been there, and it’s only now that we’re getting an overview. was debated in the teaching managers’ meetings before Christmas, and many expressed a need for clarification of what is expected of course leaders regarding tailoring courses for students.
Such questions will undoubtedly arise in everyday teaching life at a large department such as BIO, and should there be a need for clarification, please contact me and the study administration. If a student wants significant adaptations, it is right and natural to ask them to submit an adaptation application. In this way, all parties can work well on how to implement this in the best possible way. It is also important to emphasize that adaptations should not lower academic requirements but give each candidate a reasonable chance to participate in the teaching.
Yours sincerely
Øyvind Halskau, Head of Education BIO (deputy)