Special Topic Area:
Universally Designed Assessments

Publications and Other Universal Design Resources

Online resources available at NCEO's Web site (the publications are listed chronologically, with the most recent first; Policy Directions will give a general overview of the issues with other publications providing greater depth):

• A State Guide to the Development of Universally Designed Assessments / PDF format
• Universal Design Online Manual
• Using the Think Aloud Method (Cognitive Labs) to Evaluate Test Design for Students with Disabilities and English Language Learner (Technical Report 44) / PDF Format
• Using Systematic Item Selection Methods to Improve Universal Design of Assessments (Policy Directions 18) / PDF format (2006)
• Considerations for the Development and Review of Universally Designed Assessments (Technical Report 42) / PDF Version (2005)
• 2005 State Special Education Outcomes: Steps Forward in a Decade of Change / >PDF Version (3MB) (2005)
• Analyzing Results of Large-scale Assessments to Ensure Universal Design (Technical Report 41) / PDF format (2005)
• 2003 State Special Education Outcomes: Marching On / PDF format (2003)
• Improving Validity of Large-scale Tests: Universal Design and Student Performance / PDF format (Technical Report 37 / 2003)
• Using Computer-based Tests with Students with Disabilities / PDF format (Policy Directions 15 / 2003)
• Universal Design Applied to Large Scale Assessments / PDF format (Synthesis Report 44 / 2002)
• Access to Computer-Based Testing for Students with Disabilities (Synthesis Report 45 / 2002)
• Universally Designed Assessments: Better Tests for Everyone! / PDF format (Policy Directions 14 / 2002)

Additional Online Resources

American Printing House for the Blind
The Accessible Test Department is committed to providing accessible assessments and tests for students who are blind or visually impaired. Accessible Test Department staff members coordinate test and assessment formats and materials and most promising practices related to test adaptation and development, test administration, and test-taking procedures.

IMS Guidelines for Developing Accessible Learning Applications (2003)

Research Centers and Projects

Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) is a not-for-profit research and development organization that explores the use of technologies to improve educational opportunities for all people, especially those with disabilities. It has extended the concept of universal design to develop Universal Design for Learning (UDL), a new paradigm for teaching, learning, and assessment, that draws on new brain research and new media technologies to respond to individual learner differences.

Center for Universal Design is a national research, information, and technical assistance center that evaluates, develops, and promotes universal design in housing, public and commercial facilities, and related products. The Center established seven Principles of Universal Design that may be applied to evaluate existing designs, guide the design process and educate both designers and consumers about the characteristics of more usable products and environments.

Designing Accessible Reading Assessments (DARA) is based at Educational Testing Service (ETS). DARA focuses on students with learning disabilities and is planning to take a component approach to assessing reading. This approach isolates into subtests the individual components of reading (e.g., comprehension or word recognition) and allows for accommodations (e.g., audio presentation) to be specific to subtests without impacting the validity of the entire test.

The National Accessible Reading Assessment Projects (NARAP) is a collaboration of projects funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to conduct research to make large-scale assessments of reading proficiency more accessible for students who have disabilities that affect reading. Because public schools are accountable for demonstrating the reading proficiency of the diverse population of students in schools today, it is more important than ever that these assessments be accessible and reflect the students' true knowledge and skills.

The Partnership for Accessible Reading Assessment (PARA) is a research and development project funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to make reading assessments more accessible for students with disabilities that affect reading. PARA is a five-year project that was established in October 2004. The project focuses on all disabilities that affect reading, particularly as the project identifies the issues that exist and the possible solutions. During field testing, PARA will include all students in sampled classrooms and will over-sample students with learning disabilities, speech-language impairment, mental retardation, and deaf/hearing impairment.

Trace Research & Development Center is a part of the College of Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Founded in 1971, Trace has been a pioneer in the field of technology and disability. The mission of Trace is “To prevent the barriers and capitalize on the opportunities presented by current and emerging information and telecommunication technologies, in order to create a world that is as accessible and usable as possible for as many people as possible.The Universal Design Research Project is funded by the U.S. Dept. of Education National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research to gain an understanding of why and how companies adopt universal design, and what factors are the most important in making this decision.

Adaptive Environments is a Boston based non-profit educational organization dedicated to promoting accessibility and universal design. They funnel the depth and breadth of worldwide information about universal design, and disseminate the wealth of ideas and best examples to two audiences: decision makers (e.g., academics, design practitioners, leaders from business and government) and the general public.

Articles Online

Arditi, A. (1999). Making text legible: Designing for people with partial sight. New York: Lighthouse.

Brown, P.J. (1999). Findings of the 1999 plain language field test. University of Delaware, Newark, DE: Delaware Education Research and Development Center.

Dolan, R. P., & Hall, T. E. (2001). Universal Design for Learning: Implications for Large-Scale Assessment. IDA Perspectives, 27(4), 22-25.

Dolan, R. P., Hall, T. E., Banerjee, M., Chun, E., & Strangman, N. (2005). Applying principles of universal design to test delivery: The effect of computer-based read-aloud on test performance of high school students with learning disabilities. Journal of Technology, Learning & Assessment, 3(7).

ERIC/OSEP (Educational Reseurces and Information Clearinghouse & Office of Special Educaiton Programs. (1998, Fall). What is "Universal Design" for Curriculum Access? Washington, DC: Author.

Fletcher, V. (2002). Universal Design, Human-Centered Design for the 21st Century. Adaptive Environments Center, Inc.

Mace, R. L. (1998). A Perspective on Universal Design. An edited excerpt of a presentation at "Designing for the 21st Century: An International Conference on Universal Design"

Osborn, Helen (January, 2001). In Other Words… Communicating Across a Life Span…Universal Design in Print and Web-based Communication. On Call.

Rose, D. (2000). Universal Design for Learning. Journal of Special Education Technology 15(4), Fall 2000.

Vanderheiden, G. C. (1990). Thirty-something Million: Should They be Exceptions?Human Factors, 32(4), pp. 383-396.

Vanderheiden, G. (2000) Fundamental Principles and Priority Setting for Universal Usability. Trace Research & Development Center, Madison, WI.

Weisman, L. K. (1999). “Creating Justice, Sustaining Life: The Role of Universal Design in the 21st Century.” Keynote Address at the Adaptive Environments Center 20th Anniversary Celebration, Boston, April 10, 1999.

Other Resources

Bar, L., & Galluzzo, J. (1999). The accessible school: Universal design for educational settings. Berkeley, CA: MIG Communications.

Bowe, F. G. (2000). Universal design in education: Teaching nontraditional students. Westport, Connecticut: Bergin & Garvey.

Dolan, R. and T. Hall (2001). Universal design for learning: Implications for large-scale assessment. Perspectives: International Dyslexia Association, 27 (4), 22-25.

Hoener, A., Salend. S., & Kay, S. I. (1997). Creating readable handouts, worksheets, overheads, tests, review materials, study guides, and homework assessments through effective typographic design. Teaching Exceptional Children, 29 (3), 32-35.

Rose, D. (2001). Universal design for learning: Associate Editor column. Journal of Special Education Technology, 15 (2), 1-8.

Schriver, K. A. (1997). Dynamics in document design. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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