Consider Universal Design for Learning

Universal Design for Learning acknowledges that there is great variation in how individuals learn. Two major points of Universal Design for Learning are:

1. Learning should be designed to be accessible to everyone
2. Information should be conveyed in a variety of ways, known as “multiple means of representation”. For example, instead of using just a wall of text, consider adding some visual elements. If you do add an image, you should explain it using the description tag available online. Sometimes a video is the best way to explain something, but if you use video, be sure to always include transcripts and captioning. (The information about Universal Design for Learning research evidence goes into great depth about this).

Use Mind mapping

Mind mapping has been found to be an effective means of helping students organise new learning while reinforcing previous learning and improving information retrieval. Some studies (example here) have found that using mind mapping as a learning strategy facilitates memory and critical thinking.

If you are still not convinced, check out ‘The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them’.

Keep in mind that mind maps are not just good for learners, they are great for teachers too. When planning your course, you might use a mind map to decide what content to include, and to show how concepts and skills are connected. You could then share this with your learners so they can get an overview of how you see your course fitting together. Using mind maps to outline your course syllabus not only models how to organise information but also adheres to the universal design principles of conveying information in multiple modes, according to Biktimirov & Nilson, 2006 in ‘Show Them the Money: Using Mind Mapping in the Introductory Finance Course’.

Offer a partial graphic organiser

Instead of providing your complete lecture notes on your LMS (e.g. Moodle, Blackboard, etc), consider offering a partial graphic organiser (see Visual Organiser Tools in the Ontario Extend Toolkit) to highlight some of the key learning. This creates high impact learning, as students are able to actively participate in their learning, especially if you prompt them to add in important facts to create the full picture. This practice should also help to ensure attendance remains high. In ‘Increasing Text Comprehension and Graphic Note Taking Using a Partial Graphic Organizer’, Robinson et al (2006) describe how using this approach can aid in learning.

Provide opportunities for better note-taking

For note-taking, try Cornell notes. Take a look at this video on how to take Cornell notes:

• Split your page so that it looks like Cornell notes.
• Take notes that make sense to you in the right-hand (two-thirds) space.
• When you are done, use two different colour markers to highlight key points and new or specialised vocabulary. Use the left-hand (one-third) space to rewrite those key points and vocabulary with explanatory text.

Download a pdf version of these Cornell notes