Collaborative Research: Universal Design of Inquiry-Based Middle and High School Science Curricula

联邦立法提高了对残疾学生在普通课程和评估系统中的期望。科学教育面临着越来越多的责任，因为它要为更多样化的人群提高科学成就，同时更加重视将更高层次的思维技能与内容知识相结合的学习。积极的科学学习要求学生发展和使用一些复杂的技能，包括阅读、观察、收集和分析信息、得出结论和提出研究结果。通用学习设计(UDL)原则提供了表达的灵活性以及多种表达和参与方式的支持，以满足这一需求。应用特殊技术中心(CAST)率先开发了区分教学的技术，主要是在识字方面，为各种能力和残疾的学生提供差异化的教学。密歇根大学和教育发展中心正在分别为初中和高中开发和测试综合科学课程。他们将他们的共同专业知识结合在一起，为初中和高中教学材料的通用设计科学材料创建启发式方法；建立一个开源的UDL探究科学系统(ISS)，使科学课程能够转变为包含UDL功能的数字支持版本；并利用ISS从测试的教学材料中产生四个UDL化学和生物单元样本，并评估这些样本对有学习障碍和没有学习障碍的初中生和高中生的好处。这些材料支持制定国家教材无障碍标准(NIMAS)。

Federal Legislation has raised the expectations for students with disabilities within the general curriculum and assessment systems. Science education faces increased accountability for raising science achievement for a much more diverse population, while increasing the emphasis on learning that integrates higher-order thinking skills with content knowledge. Active science learning requires students to develop and use a number of complex skills including reading, observing, collecting and analyzing information, drawing conclusions and presenting findings. The principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provide the flexibility of representation and the support of multiple means of expression and engagement to address this need. The Center for Applied Special Technologies (CAST) has pioneered the development of technology to differentiate instruction, mainly in literacy, for students with a wide range of abilities and disabilities. The University of Michigan and Education Development Centers are developing and testing comprehensive science curricula for the middle school and high school, respectively. They bring their joint expertise together to create heuristics for universally designed science materials for middle and high school instructional materials; to build an open source UDL Inquiry Science System (ISS) that enables science curricula to be transformed into digitally supported versions that incorporate UDL features; and to use the ISS to produce four UDL exemplars of chemistry and biology units from tested instructional materials and to evaluate the benefits of these exemplars for middle and high school students with and without learning disabilities. These materials support the development of the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS).