Universal Design of Assessments and AA-MAS Transition

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Universal Design of Assessments and AA-MAS
Transition

• Christopher Johnstone, Ph.D.

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What is universal design?

• The term universal design was first coined by
  architect Ron Mace to describe environments that
  are accessible to a wide variety of users.

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What does UD look like in the real world?

• Curb cuts and ramps
• Signage with universal symbols
• Door handles rather than knobs
• Special pen shapes that are easier to hold

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Design is important!
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So, what does this mean for education?

• Universal design principles have been applied to
  educational settings to increase access to grade
  level content for students with disabilities.
• The idea of universal design is that it will
  improve access for students with and without
  disabilities.

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Universal Design of Assessment (UDA)

• Inclusive assessment population
• Precisely defined constructs
• Accessible, non-biased items
• Amenable to accommodations
• Simple, clear, and intuitive instructions and
  procedures
• Maximum readability and comprehensibility
• Maximum legibility (Thompson, Johnstone,
  Thurlow, 2002).

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What UD is not

• Do we want to change the standard we are
  teaching? NO
• Can we forget about accommodations if we do
  this? NO
• Is this all figured out for now and
  forever? NO
• Is this something that will benefit only students
  with disabilities? NO

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From AA-MAS to Inclusive Assessments

• Form groups that cut across state lines
• In groups, think of three features of your AA-MAS
  that were designed to improve accessibility for
  students with disabilities
• Now, focus on one of these features as a group
  and answer the questions

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Question 1

• Can this feature be integrated into the general
  education assessment?
• If yes, how might this help to improve
  accessibility for more students than those served
  by AA-MAS?
• If no, what validity concerns are present that
  would make this feature impossible to integrated
  into the general assessment?

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Question 2

• (if you answered yes to the previous item,
  think about a different feature that might
  introduce validity concerns)
• If a feature introduces validity challenges, how
  might the feature be tweaked so it does not
  inadvertently advantage or disadvantage certain
  students?

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Question 3

• Now that the accessibility feature has been
  tweaked to address validity concerns, is it
  possible to leave the feature as is for certain
  students and provide as an accommodation?
• If so, what students?

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Question 4

• Now think back to your original three features of
  the AA-MAS. Divide these into four categories
• Can be integrated into general assessment
• Can be integrated into general assessment with
  some minor changes
• Can be integrated into general assessment, but
  only as an accommodation for certain students
• Cannot be integrated at all into the general
  assessment

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UDA Tools

• AA-MAS represented new features which improved
  accessibility for students with disabilities
• Some of these features may have accessibility
  benefits and reduce barriers for the general
  population
• Other features may need to be adjusted for
  general consumption
• Other features will not be appropriate

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Thinking Like Architects

• UD asks us to think like architects
• UD asks us to consider accessibility

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UDA and AA-MAS

• UDA focuses on accessibility of assessments
• AA-MAS provides insights and features which could
  be included into the design of general
  assessments
• This may increase accessibility for the general
  population AND students with disabilities