1. Jeanne L. Higbee, Irene M. Duranczyk,
Multicultural Awareness Project for Institutional Transformation: Making the Case for Universal Instructional Design
Jeanne L. Higbee, Irene M. Duranczyk,
& David Ghere University of Minnesota Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the European Access Network (EAN), Galway, Ireland, June, 2007

2. Contact Information
Jeanne L. Higbee,
Irene M. Duranczyk,
David Ghere,
Center for Research on Developmental Education and Urban Literacy (CRDEUL),
Pedagogy and Student Services for Institutional Transformation (PASS IT),

3. Agenda History of MAP IT & Theoretical Framework
Summary of Relevant Findings
The PASS IT Project
The Intersection of Multicultural Awareness and Universal Instructional Design for Institutional Transformation: Integrated Multicultural Instructional Design (IMID)
Questions and Discussion

4. 10 MAP-IT Guiding Principles
Development of Social Skills
Extra Curricular / Co-curricular Activities
Educational Support Services
Shared Cultural Values
Culturally-Sensitive Assessment
Institutional Governance / Organization / Equity
Decision Making / Collaboration / Supportive Environment
Professional Development Programs
Equitable Learning Opportunities
Ways of Knowing

5. Theoretical Framework: Banks’ 5 Dimensions of Multicultural Education
Content integration
Knowledge construction
Prejudice reduction
Equity pedagogy
Empowering school culture

6. MAP IT Student Findings
Conducted spring 2004
Students enrolled in GC 1422: Writing Lab
406 of 629 students registered in the course responded = 65% response rate
403 questionnaires were complete/usable
Response choices: 1 = never or almost never, 2 = occasionally, 3 = often, 4 = almost always or always
Demographics = how students identified themselves

7. Student Demographics 48% female, 45% male, 1% transgender
75% native speakers of English
6% students with disabilities
42% Caucasian
16% Asian American; 6% Asian
12% African American; 4% African
6% Hispanic/Latina/Latino
4% Biracial/multiracial
1% Pacific Islander
0% Native American

8. MAP IT Faculty-Staff Findings
From spring 06 administration (not same administration as discussed in the paper; this data is provided in the monograph)
41 of 164 GC employees responded = 25% response rate
No demographic data collected
Purpose: To provide a multiculturalism baseline for transition from General College to Dept. of Postsecondary Teaching and Learning

9. Area
Faculty/
Staff Mean
Student Means
Commitment to Diversity
3.59
Organizational Structure
3.21
Professional Development
3.42
3.15
Equal Opportunities for Success
3.36
3.45
Awareness of Social Context
3.35

10. Area
Faculty/Staff Mean
Student Means
Acquiring Effective Social Skills
3.14
Developmental Support Services
3.37
Ideas Valued by Many Cultures
3.31
2.97
Extracurricular and Co-curricular
2.65
2.88
Culturally Sensitive Assessment

11. Areas for Concern From Student Results
At U of M, have you been discriminated against? M = 1.49, median & mode = 1
Does discrimination hinder your opportunities to participate fully in the General College? M = 1.66, median & mode = 1
Are you concerned about your safety on this campus? M =1.83, median = 2, mode = 1

12. Concerns (cont.)
Do administrators, faculty, and staff talk openly and constructively with you about multicultural issues? M = 2.80
Do you have opportunities to interact with appropriate role models? M = 2.87
Opportunities for civic engagement? M = 2.36
Have you participated in university activities outside of class that promote multicultural understanding? M = 2.26

13. Pedagogy and Student Services for Institutional Transformation (PASS IT)
Funded by U.S. Dept. of Ed.
Goal is to enhance learning for all students both within and outside the classroom through implementation of Universal Design and Universal Instructional Design
Exploring differences in course pass rates for students with disabilities, and also the extent to which separate accommodations are no longer necessary

14. Definition of Universal Design
Universal Design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design
Source: The Center for Universal Design (1997)

15. Not just “one size fits all . . .”
Applied to higher education, the primary goal of Universal Design is to create inclusive, flexible, customizable products, courses, programs, activities, and environments.

16. Universal Instructional Design
Create a respectful learning environment
Determine essential course components
Establish clear expectations and feedback
Develop natural supports for learning, including through use of technology
Use multiple teaching strategies
Provide multiple types of opportunities to demonstrate knowledge
Encourage contact between students and faculty
Source: North Carolina State University, 1997; based on Chickering & Gamson, 1987

17. Implementing UID
Consider all possible students who might enroll in a course (or make use of a program or service) and design the course content, pedagogy, and physical space (or office or program) to ensure that all students will have equal access and feel welcomed

18. PASS IT Data
: In UID classes, pass rate for students with disabilities was 87.8% (n = 41); pass rate for students who do not have disabilities was 89.8% (n = 617)
F 2006: In UID classes, pass rate for students with disabilities was 90% (n = 59); pass rate for students who do not have disabilities was 92% (n = 1550)
At the U
of Minnesota, of the 31 students with disabilities, 29 did not require any separate accommodations

19. Next Logical Steps
Extending implementation of Universal Instructional Design to think more broadly about access and success for students from underrepresented populations
Considering misunderstandings related to the “universal” in UID
Developing a model for Integrated Multicultural Instructional Design (IMID) that builds on the work of MAP IT and PASS IT

20. Integrated Multicultural Instructional Design (IMID): Guiding Principles to Create Action Steps to Enhance Students’ Multicultural Educational Experiences

21. IMID Guiding Principles (see pp. 12-13 of paper)
Value difference
Articulate commitment to diversity
Establish respectful and supportive learning environment
Promote understanding of how contexts shape learning
Determine essential course components
Embed skill development

22. IMID Guiding Principles (cont.)
Communicate clear expectations
Provide constructive feedback
Integrate multicultural perspectives
Teach ideas valued by many cultures
Provide natural supports
Use diverse teaching methods
Create multiple ways for demonstrating knowledge

23. IMID Guiding Principles (cont.)
Use culturally-sensitive assessments
Promote interaction among and between faculty and students

24. Diversity and the Postsecondary Experience and MAP IT report available free of charge in pdf format on the CRDEUL Web site,