CAST, Center for Applied
Special Technology, was founded in 1984 as a nonprofit organization. As a
leading nonprofit organization in education, CAST works to advance learning
opportunities and outcomes for all individuals through the Universal Design for
Learning. CAST’s staff is comprised of a variety of specialists in education
research and policy, neuropsychology, clinical/school psychology, technology,
engineering, curriculum development, and K-12 development. The section titled
“Teaching Every Student” is a place where teachers and other supporting
educators in education can gain knowledge and a better understanding about the
practices and principles of the Universal Design for Learning.
Basics, Activities, Case Stories, Planning Using UDL,
Training, and Model UDL Lessons for K-12 are all different components of this
site to help facilitate the comfort in using UDL in the classroom. I have found
this site to be helpful and user friendly. With so many activities and readings
provided, I feel as though a new teacher could grasp this content rather
easily.
I completed “Your Three
Brain Networks” activity. “When you view an image, all three brain networks are
at work. Your recognition network rapidly identifies objects and discerns the
overall context. Your strategic network determines how you examine the image
and what information you will gain from it. And your affective network
determines how long and how carefully you look. All three networks together
determine what you actually see.” This was such a fun way to relate this
information to myself and see how I best use my brain. I highly suggest you
give it a try to see how your brain functions. Additionally, while the case
stories have seemed a bit outdated, I always support the use of case studies to
help the viewer/individual better relate to the content material.
Overall, I would rate this
site as one of the top sites to utilize when transitioning or looking for
answers regarding UDL. With the wide variety of information provided in a
variety of formats, all learners can access this site and accomplish their
desired educational goals.
Tara, I really like how you explained the "Your Three Brains Network" activity. I thought that was a fun way to make the information relatable. I had never really thought about how I used my brain before, so this was a pretty interesting exercise. I also like what you wrote about case studies. Case studies can really help illustrate an idea or a concept and help make the concept "click" with the reader. Thanks for sharing!
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