Principles of UDI

The Center for Universal Design in Education operationalizes the combination of these principles and guidelines to create strategies for applying UD to educational products and environments.

The original seven Principles of Universal Design for products and environments established by the Center for Universal Design follow.
    Principle 1: Equitable Use
    Principle 2: Flexibility in Use
    Principle 3: Simple and Intuitive
    Principle 4: Perceptible Information
    Principle 5: Tolerance for Error
    Principle 6: Low Physical Effort
    Principle 7: Size and Space for Approach and Use

The more specific Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides "a framework for designing curricula that enable all individuals to gain knowledge, skills, and enthusiasm for learning. UDL provides rich supports for learning and reduces barriers to the curriculum while maintaining high achievement standards for all. UDL guidelines encourage curriculum designers to provide the student with options with respect to the following.

    UDL 1: Perception
    UDL 2: Language, Expressions, Symbolism
    UDL 3: Comprehension
    UDL 4: Physical Action
    UDL 5: Expressive Skills and Fluency
    UDL 6: Executive Functions
    UDL 7: Recruiting Interest
    UDL 8: Sustaining Effort and Persistence
    UDL 9: Self-Regulation

The University of Connecticut researchers and practitioners propose seven principles that set a successful implementation of Universal Design for Instruction. Four (4) of them address the materials and activities that should be used and three define the learning environment. UID specifies that the material and activities should be:

    1: accessible and fair,
    2: flexible,
    3: straightforward and consistent and
    4: explicit, while the learning environment should:
    5: be supportive,
    6: minimize unnecessary physical effort, and
    7: accommodate students and multiple teaching methods.

Universal Design for Instruction includes two more principles related to the delivery environment:

    8: Tolerance for Error
    9: Size and Space for Approach and Use