Syllabus Resources

Accessible Syllabus (Anne-Marie Womack, Tulane University) –  Suggestions for how to make your syllabus accessible to all. Includes suggestions for effectively using pictures and text, ways to use positive rhetoric and connect course policies to course content.

Inclusion by Design: Survey Your Syllabus & Course Design (Ed Brantmeier & Andreas Broscheid, James Madison University; Carl S. Moore, University of the District of Columbia) – A worksheet designed to help instructors understand the breadth of inclusion in their teaching practices.

Making Microsoft & Adobe Documents Accessible

Accessibility via PowerPoint (by Michael Urban, University of New Haven) – In this video, Professor Michael Urban demonstrates the tools to make PowerPoint presentations accessible to all learners. He demonstrates how to use subtitles, AltText and the built-in accessibility checker. Dr. Urban has also made the presentation slides available to review.

Accessibility via Adobe & Microsoft Office (by Michael Urban, University of New Haven) – In this video Dr. Urban demonstrates how to make a PDF handout of PowerPoint slides accessible by using Microsoft Word’s accessibility checker.

Make your PowerPoint presentations accessible to all learners (Microsoft Office Support) – This guide provides instructions on how to make presentations that are suited for all audiences. It includes a list of “best practices” including tips for using links, arranging content, choosing color/text and more.

Make your Excel documents accessible to all learners (Microsoft Office Support) – Lean how add “Alternative Text” to your excel documents so they are easily understood by people using screen reading software. This article also introduces Microsoft’s built-in Accessibility Checker.

Make your Word documents accessible to all learners (Microsoft Office Support) – This resource covers items such as using the Accessibility Checker and key “best practices” in Word, such as marking images as “decorative,” using built-in headers, and ScreenTips (text that appears when the cursor hovers over text or images with a hyperlink.)

Supporting Low Vision/Blind Students

A Guide to a Successful College Experience (by Ardis Bazyn, Reposted with permission from the American Council of the Blind) – This is a comprehensive guide covering many aspects of the college experience to support blind students in having a successful college experience.

Colour Contrast Analyzer – The Colour Contrast Analyser (CCA) helps to determine the legibility of text and the contrast of visual elements, such as graphical controls and visual indicators.

SensusAccess – This service allows students, faculty, staff and alumni to automatically convert documents into a range of alternate media including audio books (MP3 and DAISY), e-books (EPUB, EPUB3 and Mobi), and digital Braille.

Perkins School for the Blind Blog & Resources – Perkins eLearning offers a large information bank of blogs, activities, teaching resources and more for supporting blind & low-vision students.

Universal Design for Learning is a teaching framework based on scientific insights to help all learners participate in meaningful and challenging learning opportunities. It is applicable to all disciplines.  

UDL Guidelines (Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST)) – New to UDL? Start here to understand the principles and guidelines that make up the UDL framework. 

UDL and 21st Century Learning (by Gwen Bass, PhD, and Michael Lawrence-Riddell in Faculty Focus) – How to integrate principles of UDL and multimedia theory. 

UDL Checklist (National Center on Accessing the General Curriculum) – Mirroring the three principles and nine guidelines of UDL, this checklist provides examples of different ways instructors can follow UDL guidelines.

Institute for Learning Innovation UDL Resources (Diana J. LaRocco, Goodwin University) – A series of readings, podcasts, short videos and more. Curated for University of New Haven instructors by the Diana J. LaRocco for her presentation “Stop the Stickiness: Leveraging Design Thinking and Universal Design for Learning.”

Fostering and Assessing Equitable Classroom Participation (Harriet W. Sheridan Center for Teaching & Learning, Brown University) – Practical strategies for how to explain the importance of discussion to students and how to address students’ reasons for non-participation. 

How to Make Your Teaching More Inclusive (by Viji Sathy & Kelly A. Hogan, Chronicle of Higher Education) – Tips for identifying and reducing inequities in course structure to help students succeed.  

Reducing Stereotype Threat (Center for Teaching & Learning, Washington University in St. Louis) – Stereotype threat is a phenomenon in which concern about confirming a negative stereotype can lead a person to under-perform on an assessment. Read about how to promote a “growth mindset,” provide feedback, and create a classroom climate that reduces stereotype threat.

Diversity Issues for the Instructor: Identifying Your Own Attitudes (Center for Teaching and Learning, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) – This article offers a series of questions that ask instructors to reflect on their own life to identify attitudes towards diversity. 

Speaking Your Mind: Should Professors Reveal Their Views on Controversial Topics?  (by Mano Singham, Association of America Colleges & Universities) ​ A professor reviews the pros & cons of sharing with students your personal opinions on controversial topics. 

How Do We Lead on Equity? Hint: Avoid a Routine Approach and Focus on Building Trust (by Adrianna Kezar and Sharon Fries-Britt, Association of American Colleges & Universities) This University of Missouri case study has identified two frameworks that allow for authentic engagement in building equity across campuses.

Recommendation to Make Your Classroom Trans-Inclusive (Pride Center, California State University, Northridge) –​ How to create a respectful and welcoming environment for all students.​ 

Inclusion & Class Climate: What does Inclusive teaching mean? (Teaching Engagement Program, University of Oregon) – Suggestions on how to plan for and implement a classroom where students can thoughtfully discuss challenging topics.​ 

Inclusive Classroom Climate​ (Poorvu Center for Teaching & Learning, Yale University) – Actionable steps to take to implement inclusive practices in your class​. 

Ask Me: What LGBTQ Students Want Their Professors to Know​ (by Julia Schmalz, The Chronicle for Higher Education) – Highlights what LGBTQ students want members of the academic community to know​. 

Misgendering: What it is and why it matters (by Sabra L. Katz-Wise, Harvard Health Publishing) – Tips and tools for using correct pronouns & honorifics including suggestions for practice and how to respond when someone is misgendered.

Diversity and Inclusiveness in the Classroom​ (by Jesús Treviño, Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence, University of Arizona) – Practical activities to run in the classroom (see pages 5-7) and guidelines for class discussions (see page 8). 

Project Implicit​ (Project Implicit)- Quizzes designed by a research group to understand hidden biases that influence perception, judgment, and action​. 

Guide for Inclusive Teaching at Columbia (Center for Teaching & Learning, Columbia University) – Covering five principles – expectations, accessibility, classroom climate, course content & reflection – this guide offers a comprehensive framework for approaching inclusive teaching.

Inclusive Teaching Practices Toolkit (Association of College & University Educators (ACUE)) – Tailored for online teaching, the ACUE offers a series of short videos (2mins or less) and corresponding downloadable resources 10 inclusive teaching practices.