AEOE and the Environmental Educators of North Carolina (EENC) have teamed up with content experts to develop a new “Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in Environmental Education” online course. UDL improves and optimizes teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. UDL is a framework to guide the design of learning environments that are accessible and challenging for all, rather than making modifications for individual students’ needs. Ultimately, the goal of UDL is to support learners to become “expert learners” who are, each in their own way, purposeful and motivated, resourceful and knowledgeable, and strategic and goal-driven.

We anticipate this course will take approximately 10-12 hours over 6 weeks to complete. We’re recruiting pilot testers to help us check the course mechanics, provide feedback on the assignments, and help assess whether our time estimate is correct! 

This course is designed to encourage you to reflect deeply on your practice to focus on how you plan and teach to support all learners. The course content and associated assignments are geared towards practicing environmental and outdoor educators. We hope this course will inspire you to strengthen your pedagogical practices so they are more welcoming, inclusive, and accessible.

The pilot for this course will run from March 21 through April 29, 2022.  

Format: This is an asynchronous online course. 

• All activities must be completed independently on your own time/schedule within the 6-week timeframe. The actual time to complete the course will vary, but we estimate it will take approximately 10-12 hours.

• We will provide a suggested timeline and periodic reminders to encourage the timely completion of assignments. While we want to be flexible, we also want these learning experiences to be meaningful and we think timely and periodic work in the course will benefit participants more than trying to complete coursework at the last minute.

• Coursework includes watching videos, reading articles, posting on public forums and Padlet boards, and writing/recording personal reflections.

Registration for the pilot program is FREE. In exchange for your participation in this pilot program, you will receive a $40 stipend upon full completion of the course and the evaluation. Registration is limited. We plan to offer the course more broadly in the future.