"Maths anxiety is a psychological phenomenon in which a person experienced fear, tension, or discomfort when faced with mathematical tasks or situations. It is a common problem among students in higher education, particularly in subjects that requires a strong mathematical foundation such as physics, engineering, and economics. Maths anxiety could have a range of negative effects on a student's academic performance and well-being and could also have wider implications for a student's academic and career prospects. Joined the Irish Branch of the Mathematical Resilience Network for a Maths Anxiety Awareness Day workshop!"

"Maths anxiety is a psychological phenomenon in which a person experienced fear, tension, or discomfort when faced with mathematical tasks or situations. It is a common problem among students in higher education, particularly in subjects that requires a strong mathematical foundation such as physics, engineering, and economics. Maths anxiety could have a range of negative effects on a student's academic performance and well-being and could also have wider implications for a student's academic and career prospects. Joined the Irish Branch of the Mathematical Resilience Network for a Maths Anxiety Awareness Day workshop!"

"Maths anxiety is a psychological phenomenon in which a person experienced fear, tension, or discomfort when faced with mathematical tasks or situations. It is a common problem among students in higher education, particularly in subjects that requires a strong mathematical foundation such as physics, engineering, and economics. Maths anxiety could have a range of negative effects on a student's academic performance and well-being and could also have wider implications for a student's academic and career prospects. Joined the Irish Branch of the Mathematical Resilience Network for a Maths Anxiety Awareness Day workshop!"

The project is concerned with opening the institutional dialogue about the benefits of adopting the principles of Universal Design for Learning in our practice.

"This one-day course was designed for education professionals who work closely with those who have dyscalculia either in a teaching or supporting role or those who wish to develop their own knowledge and understanding of the area. The one-day course had a particular focus on identifying dyscalculia in learners in a post 16 setting. By the end of the one-day course, participants got an understanding of: What is Dyscalculia? How is dyscalculia different from maths learning difficulties? How can dyscalculia and maths learning difficulties be identified in Post 16 learners? What is maths anxiety? What is good practice in supporting learners with dyscalculia? "

"This one-day course was designed for education professionals who work closely with those who have dyscalculia either in a teaching or supporting role or those who wish to develop their own knowledge and understanding of the area. The one-day course had a particular focus on identifying dyscalculia in learners in a post 16 setting. By the end of the one-day course, participants got an understanding of: What is Dyscalculia? How is dyscalculia different from maths learning difficulties? How can dyscalculia and maths learning difficulties be identified in Post 16 learners? What is maths anxiety? What is good practice in supporting learners with dyscalculia? "

In this seminar, we outlined the principles of UDL focusing on the why, how and what of learning. We shared with you our experiences of completing the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education’s (NFETLHE’s) UDL Digital Badge which we completed during the 2020-21 academic year. We provided an insight into what was involved and how it has impacted our thinking and practice in MTU.

"Though nearly as common as dyslexia, dyscalculia is neither well-known nor well-understood among educators and clinicians. In recent years students with dyscalculia have presented in different MTU Cork programmes of study and have struggled with completing core maths modules or using maths within modules of their course such as Science and Business subjects. Staff in MTU Cork were surveyed about their awareness of and questions about Dyscalculia. In addition, students with the Disability Support Service (DSS) were surveyed on their experience of dyscalculia in college. The results of these surveys were used to inform the design and content of this workshop and their findings were presented during the workshop itself. The objective of this workshop was to raise awareness about dyscalculia among the MTU community and identify best practice approaches to support our students with dyscalculia. Following universal design for learning (UDL) principles that promote increased accessibility in teaching and learning we hope that this raised awareness will in fact benefit all students who interact with maths and numbers as part of their studies at MTU Cork. A major focus of this workshop was on ways in which lecturers or tutors can support students with Dyscalculia to succeed. Hilary Maddocks has worked for many years supporting such students at Loughborough University. The student perspective was also presented as we heard from an MTU Cork student about her experiences of learning with Dyscalculia, and the DSS gave some background."

"Though nearly as common as dyslexia, dyscalculia is neither well-known nor well-understood among educators and clinicians. In recent years students with dyscalculia have presented in different MTU Cork programmes of study and have struggled with completing core maths modules or using maths within modules of their course such as Science and Business subjects. Staff in MTU Cork were surveyed about their awareness of and questions about Dyscalculia. In addition, students with the Disability Support Service (DSS) were surveyed on their experience of dyscalculia in college. The results of these surveys were used to inform the design and content of this workshop and their findings were presented during the workshop itself. The objective of this workshop was to raise awareness about dyscalculia among the MTU community and identify best practice approaches to support our students with dyscalculia. Following universal design for learning (UDL) principles that promote increased accessibility in teaching and learning we hope that this raised awareness will in fact benefit all students who interact with maths and numbers as part of their studies at MTU Cork. A major focus of this workshop was on ways in which lecturers or tutors can support students with Dyscalculia to succeed. Hilary Maddocks has worked for many years supporting such students at Loughborough University. The student perspective was also presented as we heard from an MTU Cork student about her experiences of learning with Dyscalculia, and the DSS gave some background."

"Our classrooms have become more diverse and complex in terms of both student culture and ability, but the question is, do students see themselves reflected in our practice? This workshop provided participants with an introduction to UDL (Universal Design for Learning) as a model for Inclusive Practice that provides a framework to manage diversity to include all students. It explored the complexity that is implicit in the idea of inclusion especially when supporting students. Some practical tools and strategies were identified that benefit not only students with a disability, but all students in the long run. The workshop was targeted at all CIT staff, and participants: Gained an understanding of what is meant by inclusion and Universal Design for Learning Engaged in practical activities where consideration is given to how designing a learning environment that is inclusive of a more diverse student population. Used the UDL model to design an inclusive learning environment. Considered how to create an Inclusive campus Gained an insight of the work of CIT's Disability Support Service and their work on the use of reasonable accommodations in a more strategic and inclusive manner."

"Universal Design for Learning is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience, that guides the development of flexible learning environments and learning spaces that can accommodate individual learning differences. This workshop focused on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in CIT - if you are looking for ways to ensure that your classroom is as inclusive as possible and create a teaching and learning environment that is accessible to all, then this workshop helped to give you some tools and ideas on how to make this a reality! In the context of UDL, attendees: Examined and reflected on their own lectures and/or assessments Gained some insight into current best practice Obtained some practical and easy ways to create a more inclusive teaching and learning environment"

"Universal Design for Learning Co-Designing Your Classroom Dr Amanda Bastoni, Educational Research Scientist, CAST Dr Amanda Bastoni’s workshop introduced the concept of co-design and (using the UDL framework) highlighted how educators can increase creativity, collaboration, and learning in their classroom by designing learning with their students. In the workshop, we covered the why and how of co-design, including stories from the field, resources, and strategies educators can use immediately - in any learning environment.

"UDL-ifying a university and its people Prof Jo Rushworth National Teaching Fellow and Professor of Bioscience Education Dr Jo Rushworth draws on her experience as a UDL champion for her School as she outlins a range of options and starting points for colleagues who are starting out on their Universal Design journey. This work focussed on providing students with flexible learning resources, flexible ways to engage with their learning and flexible ways to demonstrate knowledge and skills, that impacted both learning and teaching and institutional policy. In an interactive presentation, Jo tells us about how the UDL guidelines were brought to life and implemented across DMU and leads us in a discussion of early steps toward achieving UDL compliance in teaching practice and of options for continuing development and enhancement. Jo’s work on co-creation with students was among the highlights from her case study.

This workshop focussed on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in CIT. If you arelooking for ways to ensure that your classroom is as inclusive as possible and to create a teaching and learning environment that is accessible to all, then this workshop should help to give you some tools and ideas on how to make this a reality! In the context of UDL, attendees: Examined and reflected on their own lectures and/or assessments Gained some insight into current best practice Obtained some practical and easy ways to create a more inclusive teaching and learning environment Learned from colleagues about some of the changes they made to make their practice more inclusive

Universal Design for Learning is the best way to teach all students effectively but how can a busy teacher get started with UDL right now? Answers are in this vibrant, research-based guidebook, created by seasoned teacher and former UDL Coordinator Loui Lord Nelson. K-12 educators will learn how to use the three key principles of UDL Engagement, Representation, and Action & Expression to present information in multiple ways and meet the needs of diverse learners. Written in first person, like a face-to-face

Learn how to incorporate accessible learning materials and technologies into your instructional design to ensure choice for learners and help them develop into independent, motivated expert learners. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for designing instruction that meets the needs of every learner. This book provides an overview of UDL, showing how to offer flexibility in methods of presentation, student participation and expression to support high achievement for all students, including those with disabilities or limited English proficiency. The book: Offers three modes of entry to allow educators to “start where they are” in their understanding of UDL and how it applies to their areas of instruction. Shows educators how to enhance and transform their instructional practices by applying a UDL lens to analyze and redesign lessons. Illustrates how to design accessible materials and use technology to provide more options for learners. Highlights how UDL is foundational to inquiry-based, project-based and constructivist hands-on learning. Dive Into UDL shows K-12 educators how to incorporate UDL in their instructional design and engage in continuous professional growth. The book will also appeal to those in coaching positions and administrators seeking to support their staff. Audience: K-12 educators

Advocates for the rights of people with disabilities have worked hard to make universal design in the built environment "just part of what we do." We no longer see curb cuts, for instance, as accommodations for people with disabilities, but perceive their usefulness every time we ride our bikes or push our strollers through crosswalks. This is also a perfect model for Universal Design for Learning (UDL), a framework grounded in the neuroscience of why, what, and how people learn. Tobin and Behling show that, although it is often associated with students with disabilities, UDL can be profitably broadened toward a larger ease-of-use and general diversity framework. Captioned instructional videos, for example, benefit learners with hearing impairments but also the student who worries about waking her young children at night or those studying on a noisy team bus. Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone is aimed at faculty members, faculty-service staff, disability support providers, student-service staff, campus leaders, and graduate students who want to strengthen the engagement, interaction, and performance of all college students. It includes resources for readers who want to become UDL experts and advocates: real-world case studies, active-learning techniques, UDL coaching skills, micro- and macro-level UDL-adoption guidance, and use-them-now resources.

AHEAD is an independent non-profit organisation working to create inclusive environments in education and employment for people with disabilities. The main focus of our work is further education and training, higher education and graduate employment. AHEAD provides information to students and graduates with disabilities, teachers, guidance counsellors and parents on disability issues in education. We undertake national research relating to the inclusion of students with disabilities, contribute to national policy forums and provide professional development opportunities to develop the capacity of staff in FET and higher education to be more inclusive. AHEAD works with graduates and employers through the GET AHEAD Graduate Forum and the WAM Mentored Work Placement Programme. AHEAD is a partner of LINK, an action learning network of European organisations promoting the inclusion of students & graduates with disabilities in Higher Education.

CAST is a nonprofit education research and development organization that created the Universal Design for Learning framework and UDL Guidelines, now used the world over to make learning more inclusive. The acronym "CAST" derives from the original name of our organization, Center for Applied Special Technology. Now we're simply CAST. Our CAST of characters includes over 50 talented employees, including world-class educators, learning scientists, instructional designers, literacy experts, policy analysts, UX and graphic designers, software engineers, and a first-rate administrative and executive staff.

This digital badge was developed as part of the National Forum fro the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education's (NFETLHE's) Open Courses for Professional Development by AHEAD and UCD Access & Lifelong Learning. As part of UDL@MTU, a Strategic Alignment of Teaching and Learning Enhancement 2020 (SATLE 2020) project funded by NFETLHE, this badge was delivered in Semester 1 2021/22 by a local group of MTU Facilitators. This badge has now been main-schemed and will be offered within MTU on an annual basis online via Canvas facilitated by Dr Marian Hurley.

Executive function (EF) describes a set of cognitive processes and mental skills that help an individual plan, monitor, and successfully execute their goals. The “executive functions,” as they’re known, include attentional control, working memory, inhibition, and problem-solving, many of which are thought to originate in the brain’s prefrontal cortex. Many behaviours in which humans engage, such as breathing or stepping out of the way of an oncoming car, occur without conscious thought. Most others, however, rely on executive function. Any process or goal pursuit that requires time management, decision-making, and storing information in one’s memory makes use of executive function to some degree. Since much of college life is process-driven and demands that students set and meet goals, disruptions in executive function can make it challenging for students to succeed. This workshop examined how we, as lecturers, can support executive functions in our students through the way in which we organise our modules on Canvas.

Universal Design for Learning Co-Designing Your Classroom Dr Amanda Bastoni, Educational Research Scientist, CAST Dr Amanda Bastoni’s workshop introduced the concept of co-design and (using the UDL framework) highlighted how educators can increase creativity, collaboration, and learning in their classroom by designing learning with their students. In the workshop, we covered the why and how of co-design, including stories from the field, resources, and strategies educators can use immediately - in any learning environment. Timestamp 0:00 Introduction 9:15 What does it mean to Design Learning? 15:00 Reflect on UDL 19:07 Building Relationships 37:17 Ways to Co-Design your classroom 39:00 Co-Design rubrics 41:28 Reflection on Co-Designing 49:14 Co-Design with peers 54:47 Tools to support Co-Design

UDL-ifying a university and its people Prof Jo Rushworth National Teaching Fellow and Professor of Bioscience Education Dr Jo Rushworth draws on her experience as a UDL champion for her School as she outlins a range of options and starting points for colleagues who are starting out on their Universal Design journey. This work focussed on providing students with flexible learning resources, flexible ways to engage with their learning and flexible ways to demonstrate knowledge and skills, that impacted both learning and teaching and institutional policy. In an interactive presentation, Jo tells us about how the UDL guidelines were brought to life and implemented across DMU and leads us in a discussion of early steps toward achieving UDL compliance in teaching practice and of options for continuing development and enhancement. Jo’s work on co-creation with students was among the highlights from her case study. Timestamps 0:00 Introduction 4:13 Overview 9:54 Getting started: UDL Champions 12:31 6 UDL ideas: Quick wins and bigger ideas 13:10 Ideas 1 & 2 13:43 Ideas 3 & 4 14:00 Ideas 5 & 6 14:40 Moving forward: Staff UDL guidance & Training 16:51 UDL staff guidance 17:57 UDL self-assessment & development tool 19:16 Flexible study resources 23:05 Flexible ways to learn 27:03 Flexible ways to show learning 30:36 Co-creation 37:03 UDL-ify a module 56:22 Thank you!

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) aims to eliminate barriers in the design of the learning environment to make the curriculum accessible for all. COVID-19 has, if anything, highlighted the need for higher and further education providers to fully embrace UDL principles and practice so as to ensure high-quality education for all students and allow for full active participation by all learners. This session will outline the principles of UDL, examine what these principles look like in action and provide advice on how these principles can be applied, even when at distance or online. In addition, it will demonstrate how, with the correct mindset at the creation stage, we can ensure resources created for students are accessible and how students can be offered flexibility through engagement, representation, action and expression. To conclude, the core tenets of inclusive assessment and feedback practice will be outlined, and how this practice can be developed at programme and individual level will be demonstrated. Drawing on research from the National Forum, UDL and practical case studies as examples, specific assessment methodologies will be examined and consideration will be given as to how these might be transformed, through the lens of universal design, to ensure inclusion of the full student population. Facilitated By: • Dr Lisa Padden, Project Lead - University for All, UCD • Trevor Boland, Digital Media and eLearning Officer, AHEAD (Ireland) • Lorraine Gallagher, Information & Training Officer, AHEAD (Ireland)

In June 2021, a project entitled “UDL@MTU – Towards Embedding UDL Practices and Principles at MTU” received funding under MTU’s allocation of the Strategic Alignment of Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund 2020. As part of this project, in semester 1 of the 2021/22 academic year, a local MTU iteration of the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education’s (NFETLHE) Digital Badge “Universal Design in Teaching and Learning” was rolled out with twelve colleagues participating from across MTU. In order to complete the badge, participants learnt about Universal Design for Learning (UDL), reflected on their own practice and redesigned some aspects of a teaching activity they were delivering in line with the principles of UDL. They then had to implement and deliver the redesigned activity, collect some feedback from students in terms of their experience of the redesigned activity and submit a short ‘Redesign Activity Report’. Catherine O’Mahony, a lecturer in Tourism in Hospitality, was one of the twelve MTU badge participants.

As part of the UDL@MTU project, 12 colleagues from across MTU participated in a local MTU-wide rollout of the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning’s Universal Design in Teaching and Learning Digital Badge and were awarded their badges, To complete this badge, participants are required to complete a redesign activity where they take an element of their own practice and apply UDL principles to redesign it and make it more accessible. We have developed a podcast series, where we showcase some of the excellent practice demonstrated by these colleagues while completing the above badge, which we will be releasing over the coming months:

Are you involved in new programme development and about to starting to create new modules? Or are involved in programmatic review and revising some existing modules? If so, the following is a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Module Guide developed by our colleague Ann Toebes, Curriculum Development Facilitator, provides suggestions for how UDL can be embedded in the curriculum via the module descriptor.

Executive function (EF) describes a set of cognitive processes and mental skills that help an individual plan, monitor, and successfully execute their goals. The “executive functions,” as they’re known, include attentional control, working memory, inhibition, and problem-solving, many of which are thought to originate in the brain’s prefrontal cortex. Many behaviours in which humans engage, such as breathing or stepping out of the way of an oncoming car, occur without conscious thought. Most others, however, rely on executive function. Any process or goal pursuit that requires time management, decision-making, and storing information in one’s memory makes use of executive function to some degree. Since much of college life is process-driven and demands that students set and meet goals, disruptions in executive function can make it challenging for students to succeed. To support executive functions in students, we developed a prototype accessible Canvas Template to help you organise your module on Canvas.

Do you wonder is there anything you can do from UDL perspective when you’re setting up your modules on Canvas? If so, you might find the following checklist useful:

MTU Teaching & Learning Unit